No Strings Attached
by JJLove28
Summary: Pressure. Alcohol. Loss. Betrayal. Sex. Murder. Escape. Fugitives. How much more can they take before love cannot save them anymore? [DMHG] COMPLETE!
1. Head Boy vs Head Girl

**A/N: Hello all! This story, No Strings Attached, has indeed been reposted. My old account was deleted, so along with creating a new account came reposting this story. Yeesh, talk about a lot of reposting. But anyways, I hope you all enjoy it and don't forget to review!**

Head Boy vs. Head Girl

Hermione Granger felt on top of the world; not only would she be entering her seventh year with perfect grades from her previous exams, and not only did she become Head Girl, but she was able to enter her seventh year without feeling tense and nervous that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named would come barging through the Great Hall any second. This is due to You-Know-Who's defeat the previous year; needless to say, Harry and everyone who was innocent in the war are safe and alive, and the ones who were You-Know-Who's Death Eater's … well, they're not alive to be able to tell the tale.

This story begins at the end of the start-of-term feast; first years had been sorted, everyone's bellies were considerably larger because of the magnificent spread and Hermione was being forced to say goodbye to her friends.

"This is so stupid." Ron Weasley whined. "Head Girl should be something enjoyable, not something that makes you miserable."

"I know." Hermione sighed. "But if Dumbledore thinks it's best for the Head Boy and Girl to have their own common room then who are we to protest?"

"Hermione's right." Harry Potter agreed. "Well then, I suppose we'll see you at breakfast?"

"Definitely." Hermione smiled. She hugged Ron and Harry before watching them depart for the Gryffindor Common Room, which she was sad to say that she would never sleep in again.

"Miss Granger, please meet me in the Entrance Hall." Professor McGonagall requested as she swept by Hermione, heading for the exit of the Great Hall.

Hermione followed. Although she was disappointed by the arrangements, she was still eager to see who Head Boy is. Dumbledore couldn't make Harry or Ron Head Boy because both had caused way too much trouble in their previous year and the years prior to it to receive the extremely important position. In fact, Hermione was sure that it wasn't even a Gryffindor, because she would have seen the gorgeous shiny Head Boy badge on someone at the table if it were.

As Hermione made her way through the crowded Great Hall, she finally found her way to the exit doors and pushed them open, anxiously awaiting the mysterious boy who she would be sharing a common room with that year. However, when her face fell upon the boy standing next to Professor McGonagall, her jaw dropped. She would recognize that white-blond hair until her dying day from all of the name-calling and insolence he had shown her since her first year at Hogwarts. He stood there with his arms crossed, smirking his infamous smirk, although this time it almost seemed pained.

"Miss Granger, Mr Malfoy, please follow me to your common room." McGonagall ordered with a tone that clearly said that she does not approve of the living arrangements.

Hermione and Draco trailed behind McGonagall as she strode down the halls and up several flights of stairs; obviously the Head Boy and Girl common room was in a more deserted area of the castle, because the crowd of students was beginning to thin out.

Finally they reached an enormous purple tapestry. McGonagall muttered a charm that caused the tapestry to unveil itself, revealing a vast painting of several mermaids lounging around on various sizes of rocks in a bright blue lagoon.

"Good evening, young ladies." McGonagall greeted sternly.

"Hello, Professor McGonagall!" A mermaid with long, shiny blond hair cried. Others began saying hello too, smiling broadly and waving.

McGonagall actually smiled. "Girls, these are the new Head Boy and Girl, Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger." She turned to look at Hermione and Draco. "The password is Coconut Ice. The rules of seventh year students apply to you two as well. There are no exceptions. I hope you find your common room… er… enjoyable. Good night."

"Goodnight Professor McGonagall!" The mermaids giggled.

McGonagall let out an exasperated sigh, but smiled nonetheless. "Goodnight, girls."

"He's cute!" A mermaid with curly black hair giggled to her redheaded mermaid friend, pointing at Malfoy. The redhead nodded vigorously in agreement, giggling as well.

Malfoy smirked. "You two aren't bad yourselves. What do you say we-"

"Coconut Ice." Hermione interrupted, angrily. The redheaded mermaid glared at her, but the portrait opened anyway. "Come on, Malfoy."

Malfoy also glared at Hermione before giving the mermaids one last sexy smile and pursuing her through the open portrait.

"First rule: I don't take order's from mudbloods." Draco said as the portrait shut behind him.

"Second rule: I don't put up with your shit, Malfoy. Which means you don't give me any." Hermione retorted.

"Wow Granger's got a potty mouth!" Malfoy laughed. "We should fix that. _Soperius_"

A bar of soap magically appeared in thin air, and Malfoy muttered a charm sending it directly for Hermione's mouth.

"_Finite Incantarto!_" Hermione shrieked after quickly withdrawing her wand and aiming it at the soap zooming directly towards her. The soap exploded into hundreds of glittering pieces, showering the common room like tiny fireworks.

"You're good, Granger." Malfoy smirked.

"They don't call me the most brilliant witch of my year for nothing, Malfoy. If I were you then I wouldn't mess with me this year, because I won't stand for it anymore. Third rule: no girls past ten thirty." Hermione continued.

"Or guys!" Malfoy retorted.

"Right, or guys."

Malfoy cracked up laughing.

"What?" Hermione shot at him.

"Nothing.' Malfoy laughed, clutching his ribs. "It's just funny. The thought of a guy actually coming here with you. Well, actually, the thought of a guy going anywhere with you, really. Hilarious!"

Hermione glared at him before shutting her eyes, counting to ten, and continuing with her speech. "Fourth rule: you cannot, under any circumstances, come into my bedroom. Nor me in yours." She added as an afterthought.

"Fair." Malfoy said. "I wouldn't allow a mudblood in my room anyway."

"Fifth rule," Hermione continued, her voice considerably louder then it had been before. "Knock before you enter the bathroom. I don't want any awkward situations occurring."

"Ew!" Malfoy shrieked. "Of course I'll knock! The thought of you naked is just revolting. I wouldn't want to see that if my life depended on it!"

Hermione's voice grew much louder as she spoke her last rule. "Sixth and final rule: no using magic in this common room unless its for school purposes. None whatsoever. Do you understand?"

"I'm tired." Malfoy said, stifling a yawn and completely disregarding Hermione's last rule. "I think I'll hit the sac, but I'm going to shower first. Now, I know I'm incredibly gorgeous and wonderful to look at, but could you please follow your little fifth rule and not try and sneak a glance at me while I'm naked?"

He smirked as he left for the bathroom, leaving Hermione fuming and to angry to say anything back to him. Instead, she walked huffily to her bedroom and lay down in her large, king-sized bed, too angry with Malfoy to even notice her beautiful bedroom surrounding her, and she fell asleep fully clothed, feeling that her perfect mood had completely evaporated because of one boy: Draco Malfoy.


	2. Butting Heads

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Here's the next chapter for all you loyal fans!**

Butting Heads

The next morning Hermione awoke feeling rejuvenated and optimistic about the day ahead of her. She didn't even think about Malfoy as she sat up and slipped her feet into the pink, fluffy slippers beside her bed (she was pretty sure the house-elves had quietly crept into her room the night before and placed the slippers there). Then she pulled a pink bathrobe out of her suitcase and wrapped herself in it before she headed for the hot shower waiting for her in the bathroom.

However, when she stepped out of her bedroom, her peaceful mood and revitalized feeling vanished. It was instead replaced by an image that she was sure would not disappear from her mind anytime soon.

"Oh god!" Hermione shrieked.

"What?" Malfoy asked. A long corridor connected their bedrooms; Malfoy's bedroom was at one end of it and Hermione's at the other, with the bathroom in the center. Malfoy was standing outside his door carrying toothpaste, a toothbrush, and wearing nothing except the towel slung over his shoulder.

"Malfoy where the hell are your pants?" Hermione demanded. She held her hand out at arms length so that she could not see anything below his waist. She also squinted her eyes so that any part of him that she actually could see would be blurry.

"Um, I live here, mudblood." Malfoy said in a tone that Hermione was an idiot and was not aware of this. "Do you really think that when I'm at my mansion that I don't sleep naked? Do you really expect me to make an exception for you? Ha! That's a good one, Granger. Keep it up."

"I don't care if you sleep naked!" Hermione exclaimed. "Just put something on when you're not in your room! Spare the rest of us the horror."

"Oh come on, Granger. I know that you think that I'm sexy." Malfoy said, raising his eyebrows and smiling seductively.

"Well then I must think that the statue of Gregory the Smarmy is sexy, too." Hermione replied in disgust. "Now cover yourself or I might just be sick."

Malfoy glared at her before covering himself with the towel hanging off his shoulder. He then slunk to the bathroom and shut the door a bit harder than necessary behind him.

_Did Draco Malfoy just do something that I asked him to do? _Hermione asked herself. Bewildered and puzzled, she made her way to the common room and poured herself a cup of hot coffee from the counter beside the portrait. It was early; only quarter after six. She found it hard to believe that Malfoy was an early riser. He always came off as someone who would try to sleep in as late as possible (even if that means missing class). Then she wondered why she was even thinking about Malfoy. She shook her head, withdrew _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade Seven_ by Miranda Goshawk, and divulged herself into the book while taking occasional sips of her steaming coffee.

About fifteen minutes later, Malfoy emerged into the common room. Fortunately for Hermione he was wearing a green and silver towel around his waist while he was drying his hair with an identical smaller one.

For the first time, Hermione took a good look at the half-naked Malfoy. As much as she despised him, she could not help but notice what a gorgeous six-pack he has. Now Hermione had seen both Harry and Ron without shirts, and they were definitely nothing compared to Malfoy. After a few moments, Hermione realized she was staring. Apparently Malfoy did as well.

"See? You do think I'm sexy." He smirked.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Good morning to you, too."

Malfoy strolled over to the counter and conjured up a cup before pouring himself a glass of coffee. "Do you always get up this early?"

"Excuse me?"

"I thought I was rather clear." Malfoy said. "I _said, _do you always get up this morning?"

"I heard you, it's just not very often that you say something to me that doesn't involve an insult or something about you being the most sexy boy at Hogwarts." Hermione glared at him. "And yes I do, so get used to it."

"I hope you don't expect me to be in my bedroom all the time." Malfoy said, plopping himself down on a comfortable, violet armchair. "Because I'm going to be out here all the time. All The Time."

"Great." Hermione replied, sarcastically. "Just wonderful."

Hermione continued reading her book and there was actually silence for about ten minutes. She was beginning to think that maybe it wouldn't be to bad living with Malfoy; he didn't seem so keen on annoying her this morning. Of course, it was too good to be true.

Malfoy began humming under his breath. At first the tune was hard to distinguish, but Hermione soon discerned it to be Weasley is our King.

Hermione glared at him, but he took no notice so she tried to continue with her reading. However, Malfoy's humming grew louder and louder.

"Do you mind?" Hermoine finally asked.

"Nope, not really." Malfoy replied. He crossed his arms and persisted with the humming, moving his feet to the beat.

"That is so out!" Hermione cried. "Nobody sings it anymore because it doesn't bother us Gryffindor's anymore, remember?"

"Yes, but then why are you so bothered?" Malfoy smirked.

"Because I'm trying to read!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Well then, read somewhere else. This is my musical chair, and while I'm in it I will be performing musical things. If you have a problem with it, then read in your bedroom."

"No!" Hermione cried. "This is _our _common room, not yours!"

"Exactly. So we're in agreement that I should be able to hum or sing or do whatever I want because this common room is partially mind. Wonderful. Now, if you don't mind I would like to continue with it, mudblood." And with that he began with Weasley is our King once more.

Frustrated, Hermione sat up and left for the bathroom. Now that Malfoy was out of the shower she was free to occupy it and clean off all of the filth that she felt whenever Malfoy was present. Once she had washed her hair and body, she stepped out of the shower and pampered herself with her perfume and her makeup and everything else that made her feel beautiful. After she straightened her hair with a simple, newly discovered spell, she gathered her things, put them away in her bedroom and headed back out into the common room.

"Draco!" A shrilly voice giggled.

The sight that met Hermione's eyes was not pretty. Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson were both on the small violet couch, Malfoy on top of Pansy. He had his hand up her shirt and the bulge on Pansy's left breast under her shirt made it quite clear to Hermione where Malfoy was touching her. They were kissing, if that's even what Hermione would call it. To her it looked like a full-blown make out session. She could actually see Pansy's tongue sliding into Malfoy's mouth, and it was completely disgusting.

"Ahem!" Hermione said, sharply. She had to deliberately clear her throat several times before Malfoy and Pansy noticed her presence standing in the archway.

"What do you want, mudblood?" Pansy asked angrily; obviously she was livid that Hermione had disrupted her little make out session with Malfoy.

"A barf bag at the moment!" Hermione cried. "Malfoy, what the hell is this?"

"I was bored." Malfoy shrugged.

"Well, be bored in your own room!" Hermione yelled. Then after thinking about it, she said, "Actually, don't. Just don't be doing this stuff when I'm around, it's sickening!"

Malfoy began to get angry. "You better stop telling me what to do, Granger. We both live here. Do you understand? Both of us. If I want… er… _friends…_coming over, then I'll have friends come over."

"Whatever." Hermione said. "I don't know if I will be able to go the whole year with this living arrangement, then."

And with that she stormed out of the Head Boy and Girl common room, leaving Malfoy and Pansy to carry on with what they were doing. By now it was after seven, so people should be filing into the Great Hall for breakfast. As she made her way down and into the Hall, she spotted Harry and Ron as two of the few students sitting at the Gryffindor table. She plopped herself down in a seat across from them and grabbed a piece of toast, jamming it into her mouth and completely disregarding the fact that her two best friends were anywhere near her.

"Um, good morning?" Harry asked.

"Don't ask." Hermione replied.

"Well, I'll ask anyway." Ron said. "What's up?"

"Stupid Malfoy!" Hermione cried.

"Is he giving you a hard time?" Harry asked. She noticed his hands balling into fists before he slid them under the table. "We heard he was Head Boy. Disgusting."

"I can handle him." Hermione said, sharply. Harry did not need to get into any more trouble. "I just can't stand living with him. It hasn't even been a day! It's just pathetic. And that Pansy cow was over this morning."

"For what?" Ron asked, stuffing his mouth with bacon.

"Oh, just for some fun." Hermione muttered, bitterly.

Ron didn't seem to understand, and Hermione definitely didn't feel like recounting the situation. So instead, she extended an invitation.

"Do you guys want to do your homework in my common room tonight?" Hermione asked. "I'd definitely fancy the company."

"Sure." Harry said. "Although we may not be doing the homework. It's first day, Hermione!"

"Yeah, it can all wait til the weekend." Ron agreed.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "You need to be caught up! If you wait until the weekend then you'll be behind and you two know more then anyone what it's like to be behind in your schoolwork!"

Luckily she was shoving food into her mouth at that moment, so she didn't see Harry and Ron roll their eyes and exchange a look that clearly said, _only our Hermione._

**A/N: Okay there we go, Chapter 2 completed. Review, please!**


	3. Pothead and Weasel

Pothead and Weasel

First day's lessons were harder than Hermione expected; she knew it was her NEWT year and that she would have to study and pay attention extra hard, but all of the new things she learned today and all of the homework she and her fellow students received is a mark of how tough her seventh year is actually going to be.

Harry and Ron followed her eagerly to her common room after supper; they were anxious to see how luxurious the Head Boy and Girl actually lived.

"Oh, more boys!" The black haired mermaid declared once the trio approached the portrait. She batted her eyelashes at Harry and Ron while the other mermaids wandered over to see the boys for themselves.

"Hello!" The blond mermaid greeted. "Wow, aren't you two cute!"

Hermione had to pull both Harry and Ron through the portrait hole by their ear after saying the password because both Harry and Ron seemed to have become so entranced with the mermaids that you'd think they were Veela's.

"Ouch! Okay, okay, I'm in." Ron said, pushing away Hermione's hand and rubbing his now red ear. "What'd ya do that for? I was going to ask her out!"

"Oh, yeah." Hermione replied. "You two could have a swell old time up in her portrait!"

Ron made to open up his mouth to retort, but a meaningful look from Harry made him shut it quickly.

"Wow, this place is so cool." Harry said.

"Yeah." Ron agreed. "You'd think Dumbledore lived here or something!"

"I expect it's a bit of a shock for you to see a place where your whole family may be able to fit in comfortably, huh Weasley?" A voice smirked.

"Malfoy." Harry growled.

"Pothead." Malfoy replied.

"I'm surprised you showed up after everything that happened last year." Harry said. "I would have thought you'd be too ashamed to show your face."

"Shut up, Potter." Malfoy warned dangerously.

"No one seems to care though, huh?" Harry continued.

"Harry…" Hermione began.

"Old Lucius snuffs it because of his stupid weakness to make his own decisions, and no one even turns a head. Well, I suppose several people turned heads. Of course, these were happy heads. Finally, Lucius is gone. Great news to the magical world-"

"Harry!" Hermione cried.

Malfoy had lunged himself at Harry, his hands closing tightly around Harry's neck.

"Finally, I'll be able to commit the murder that none on the Dark side had been able to commit. And I can do it without magic, too." Malfoy sneered. His hands closed tighter around Harry's neck.

Ron reacted quickly. He dived into the fight, trying to pull Malfoy off of Harry. Malfoy released one of his hands from Harry's neck and elbowed Ron in the face, causing Ron to fly off of him. However, the release of one of Malfoy's hand's around Harry's throat came very much to Harry's advantage; he quickly withdrew his wand from his pocket, aimed it directly at Malfoy and said, "_Uforia!_"

Malfoy levitated several inches from the ground and his hands flung up and over his head, bound together so he appeared as though invisible ropes were hanging him from the ceiling.

Ron, massaging his jaw, gave a hearty laugh. Hermione gasped, while Harry stood up, not showing any indication that he had just almost been strangled.

Harry walked over to where Malfoy was hanging by his invisible ropes. "Malfoy, your father was a good for nothing idiot who lived his life by the orders of a lunatic. He deserved to die for all of the people that he hurt, and if you're smart you'll choose not to follow in his path." Harry turned to Ron and Hermione. "Come on, let's do our homework in the library." And with that, he turned on his heel and left.

Ron smiled evilly at Malfoy before following closely behind Harry, but Hermione hesitated for a moment. She looked into Malfoy's cold gray eyes; however, she noticed a change. There was a look of sadness behind them, and he looked horrible with drops of blood pouring from his mouth; Harry's spell must have had more power in it then it should have had. Hermione quietly muttered a spell that released Malfoy before giving him a sympathetic look and pursuing Harry and Ron out of the common room.

"I hate him." Harry said, pacing back and forth down an aisle of books in the library. "Actually, I don't hate him. I _loathe _him. He got what he deserved, as did his father."

"Harry, that wasn't right." Hermione said. "Yes, Lucius hurt many people, and he was heavily influenced by Voldemort," (Ron winced), "And yes, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing _for the world _that Lucius died. But you shouldn't have said those things to Malfoy. He lost his father, for goodness sake! You should know better than anyone what that's like!"

"How dare you." Harry whispered. "HOW DARE YOU! You stand there and have the _nerve _to even slightly compare my father _or_ Sirius to that slime ball! My dad and Sirius were good men who died to protect the wizarding world! Lucius was trying to destroy it! The whole Malfoy family all deserved everything they got! If you don't realize that then you're blind and stupid, Hermione."

Hermione's jaw dropped. "Harry, that's not what I meant-" she stammered. "It's just that-"

"Go away, I don't want to talk to you at the moment." Harry said.

"But Harry-"

"Go, Hermione!" Harry screamed, his eyes red and his expression angered.

Hermione did not need to be told thrice. She could tell Harry was very angry; after all, he had not spoken about his feelings towards Sirius's death since the end of their fifth year. She gathered her things and left after receiving a sympathetic look from Ron. She figured Harry just needed a little while to calm down before he realized that what he said was wrong. So, she headed back to her common room.

"Where are all the boys?" The redheaded mermaid asked as Hermione approached their portrait. She gazed around hopefully, looking for Malfoy, Harry, or Ron.

"Coconut Ice." Hermione said through gritted teeth. The portrait swung open and she climbed through it, exhausted and eager to finish her homework in peace. However, when she walked in the first thing she saw was Malfoy on the couch with yet another girl. She was blond and Hermione immediately recognized her as Emma Dobbs, a sixth year Slytherin. She was nibbling Malfoy's bottom lip and wearing nothing but a pink bra and matching pink underwear. Malfoy was in his boxers, and Hermione noticed Emma's hand down his them. His hands were squeezing her breasts harshly, causing her to slightly moan. Just as he was about to tear off her bra, Hermione cut in.

"Malfoy!" She bellowed.

Both turned to stare at her. Malfoy's face cracked into a smile, and Emma blushed, embarrassed.

"What the hell, Malfoy!" Hermione shouted. "She's a fucking year younger than you! Ugh! I _sit _on that couch! Disgusting!" She turned to Emma. "Miss Dobbs, you can leave now."

"But-" Emma began.

"NOW! Before I inform the Headmaster!" Hermione screamed.

Emma hurriedly dressed herself and gave Malfoy one last passionate kiss before she rushed out of the common room, still blushing madly.

Hermione turned to Malfoy, crossing her arms and looking expectantly at him.

Malfoy smirked. "Why do you always crash the party before it even gets good?"

"Malfoy this is our second day at Hogwarts and already you've had two girls come to _my _home. One was even younger than you! You're sick! Do it in your room or don't do it at all. Got it?"

"Oh calm down, mudblood." Malfoy said, stretching. "I needed a bit of a refreshment after my hard day of lessons.

"Then get a drink." Hermione snarled. "It wasn't the lessons and you know it. It was what Harry said and did. I know for a fact that you weren't like this last year. The stress and trauma of what happened to your father last year is driving you to allow yourself to be distracted by women. That's all this is. Now I'm sorry that Harry and Ron were jerks back there, but you shouldn't turn to women for sexual comfort because that's not all we are."

Malfoy yawned. "I'm going to my bedroom before I do something I regret, like breaking your _sixth rule_." He said the last couple words with a bit of sarcasm. He got up and strode towards his bedroom before she could say another word.


	4. All About the Ace

All About the Ace

Hermione managed to have a shower earlier than usual the next day; she quickly dressed, gathered her things, and exited the common room without even having to glance once at Draco Malfoy.

She waited in the Great Hall for what felt like hours until breakfast was served; Harry and Ron appeared shortly after and Harry apologized for being so rude the previous day.

"It's fine." Hermione said. "Really. I can understand why you were angry, but at least we're back to being friends, right?"

"Right." Harry smiled.

"Great." Ron said, filling his plate with all sorts of different kinds of food. "So, are we having our first DA meeting tonight?"

"Yup." Harry said. "It's all set. I had to distribute about fifty more of those galleons, though. Ever since Voldemort's demise and ever since we've been able to go public with the DA, people are begging to be a part of it. Even people I don't know."

"And you're letting everyone join?" Hermione asked.

"Sure." Harry replied. "The more the merrier. Anyone who wants to come is welcome, and I've made that perfectly clear to the whole school. Of course, we're going to need to imagine a larger Room of Requirement, because the one we usually use is definitely too small. I was thinking this time we could have a stage, so everyone can see me and the spells I'm going to teach…"

Hermione allowed Harry to babble on about the DA; she was just as excited as he was, though. The DA had been a bright part of her life, and she was anxious to get started with it again. Even though Voldemort was gone, she still felt it was necessary that students be able to defend themselves against any form of the Dark Arts.

"Come on, Transfiguration first thing." Ron said, gathering his bag.

The trio made their way to Transfiguration where they unfortunately met up with the Slytherins. Malfoy was having a heavy make out session with a fellow Slytherin who Hermione could not identify; it disgusted her. After she had just told him _not _to use women to forget his problems, he stood in front of her grasping a girl and kissing her passionately. Luckily neither Pansy nor Emma Dobbs was around to see this, or Hermione had a feeling that they would have a fit.

"Repulsive." Harry said with disgust.

"Disgusting." Ron agreed.

"Rude!" Hermione cried.

"Mr Malfoy, I'd appreciate you not grope the opposite sex outside of my classroom." McGonagall appeared through the crowd of Gryffindor and Slytherin seventh years, looking sternly at Malfoy and the girl he was with. "Same goes for you, Miss Baxter."

Malfoy once again smirked his legendary smirk and grabbed the girl's butt before following her into the classroom. She gave a small, startled and yet pleasurable yelp.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Hermione said, watching Malfoy and the girl. Why did it bother her so much that he would be fooling around with a girl? No, it wasn't just one girl. It was three so far. It was rude and degrading to the women at this school who wanted dignity, or for that matter it was degrading to all women because it just proved that Malfoy could get any woman he wants. Any woman.

"Settle down." McGonagall instructed. "I have a… er… _surprise, _if you will, to share with you all today. Now, my nephew has transferred here from Durmstrang."

"As a student?" Lavender Brown asked. She was obviously extremely interested in whether or not her nephew was good-looking or not.

"I didn't know McGonagall had any family." Harry whispered to Ron and Hermione.

"Me neither." Hermione replied.

Ron shrugged.

"No, not as a student Miss Brown. He wishes to take a break from school, so he's taking a year off of Durmstrang to come and visit his aunt, myself, at Hogwarts School. He will be taking the position as assistant to the Games Keeper, Professor Hagrid. I hope that you will all be kind to him and welcome him into our school with generosity and compassion."

"When do we get to meet him?" Parvati Patil asked eagerly.

"Now, as a matter of fact." McGonagall answered, surprising the entire class. "Acelio, please come forward."

A large shadow stood up from the corners where nobody had noticed it before; it walked forward until it had reached a spot right next to McGonagall, where everyone could take a closer look at him.

"Class, please welcome Acelio McGonagall to Hogwarts."

The glass rang with discussion of the new kid as they proceeded with their Transfiguring; some, like Parvati and Lavender, were giggling as though he were the hottest boy in the world. Others, like Draco Malfoy, sulked miserably at having competition with the ladies. Harry and Ron were not too thrilled, either.

"Look at him!" Ron cried, indicating Acelio sitting on a stool next to his aunt's desk. "Thinking he's all that because his aunt is head of the Transfiguration department-"

"I think he's rather charming." Hermione sighed. She stared at him with her chin in her palm, gazing into his eyes that were such a bright shade of blue that she could see them from all the way over where she was sitting. His hair was so different from the boys here; most used gel or other hair products to hold their hair up or slick it back, but Acelio's hair was long and wavy and very soft looking. It was brown, but streaked with vivid blond highlights that definitely accented his hair. Hermione felt like staring at him all day…

"Hermione?" Ron asked. He waved a hand in front of her face and shook it vigorously up and down. "Hermione! The bell rang! It's time to go! Charms, you know."

Hermione snapped out of her trance and immediately gathered her things, then followed her two best friends to the Charms classroom, where she spent a great deal of the class daydreaming about Acelio McGonagall.

"Yay, first DA meeting starts in fifteen minutes!" Harry exclaimed. He was almost shaking with anticipation. The DA was like his baby; he treasured it and longed for it when it was gone.

"We finally get to see how many new people actually decided to come." Hermione smiled. She sipped at a glass of Butterbeer, but accidentally slopped it down her front. "Shit!" She muttered several charms to clean up the mess, however the charms only caused her shirt to dry; none of them managed to remove the new stain all over her brand new robes. "I'll be right back, I need to change!" she cried.

So, she sprinted out of the Room of Requirement and up the several flights of stairs to her common room. She quickly uttered the password to the mermaids and gained entrance into the vast room. She immediately spotted a nice, clean outfit waiting for her on the couch as though it had been placed there by magic. She hurriedly stripped down to nothing but her under garments.

"I never thought I'd see the day when Granger would where a thong." A voice smirked from the shadows.

"Malfoy!" Hermione cried. She grabbed at the clean clothes to cover herself up with, feeling extremely embarrassed.

"Please, don't stop on my account. I was actually enjoying myself." Draco sneered.

"Eat slugs, Malfoy!" Hermione yelled. She did not want to have an argument with him when she was standing in the open common room half naked.

"Where are you off to in such a hurry?" Malfoy asked.

"None of your business." Hermione replied, trying to dress herself behind the robes that she held up to cover herself. "But I am in a hurry and I'd appreciate it if you would go away."

"Fine." Malfoy said. Hermione was shocked. He usually put up a more difficult fight than this. "But make no mistake, I _will _find out where you're going. Good night."

Hermione paid no attention to Malfoy's last statement; she was in too much of a rush. Instead she threw her robes over her and hurried out of the portrait hole and back down the flights of stairs until she reached the Room of Requirement.

"Sorry I'm late." She panted, out of breath from running the stairs. Suddenly, something caught her eye. A flicker of soft brown and golden hair shone from a corner in the packed room. Acelio McGonagall was leaning against the wall, arms crossed and looking incredibly bored. _He is so good looking! _Hermione thought, allowing herself one small daydream about him before taking her place on a cushion next to Ron.

"Okay, as I was saying we are going to learn Uforia spell, because it can definitely come in handy in the future." Harry instructed the room full of students. He winked at Ron who laughed silently; he was reminiscing about the time Harry had used the spell on Malfoy.

Harry demonstrated how the spell was to be used, and the room full of students divided into pairs. Harry and Ron immediately stood next to each other, leaving Hermione alone like she was most of the time. She looked around anxiously for a partner before a tall, dark figure stood before her.

"Mind if I work with you?" the voice was deep and alluring.

"Acelio!" Hermione cried.

He gave a hearty laugh. "Call me Ace. Only my aunt calls me Acelio."

"Oh." Hermione blushed. "I'm Hermione Granger."

"Nice to meet you, Hermione. So, do you want to be partners?"

"Sure!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Ready?" Ace asked.

"Ready." She confirmed.

"_Uforia!_" Ace cried. A jet of yellow light emerged from the tip of his wand directly towards Hermione, who unwillingly imitated the position that Malfoy had been placed in the night before. Ace released her, grinning with pride.

"That was amazing." Hermione complimented, impressed. "Shall I try?"

"Be my guest." Ace invited.

"_Uforia!_" Hermione cried. A poof of yellow light exploded from her wand, but it was definitely not powerful enough to cause any damage to Ace.

He chuckled to himself.

"What?" Hermione asked resentfully. She had always mastered everything, so why was Ace better at this then she was?

"It's all about the experience, Hermione. Age counts for everything. You're younger and less experienced then me, so it's only natural that I'm better." Ace said.

"Oh?" Hermione raised her eyebrow. "And exactly how old are you?"

"I'm turning nineteen in six months." Ace replied, buffing his chest.

"Ooh, a whole year and a half older than me!" Hermione said, trying to stifle a smile.

"A year and a half is a lot of time, young Hermione." Ace said, placing an arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, by the time you reach my age you'll be as wonderful as I am, guaranteed."

Hermione laughed. "Wow, you're really full of yourself, you know that?"

"Yup, I know. It's what makes me so great. Don't worry, you'll get used to it."

Hermione laughed once more before the two carried on with the Uforia charm, chortling and joking the whole time.


	5. The Invitation

The Invitation

The first week of classes flew by rather quickly. NEWTs were never clearer then they were now, and with all of the homework, practicing for the next DA lesson and her Head Girl duties, Hermione did not have a very active social life. She had drifted slightly away from Harry and Ron; yes, they still ate their meals together and sat together in classes, but they did not continue to spend time together during the evenings. Hermione was very edgy because of all the work there was to do, and since Harry and Ron did not take it seriously or apply any kind of effort, she now refuses to work with them. Instead, she takes refuge in her common room. Malfoy is hardly ever around; most likely he's out with several different girls every night, having fun and also being careless about his schoolwork. Hermione didn't mind though; the quiet, deserted common room is exactly what she needs to complete her homework in peace.

However, by the time to next DA meeting rolled around, schoolwork was pushed far out of Hermione's mind. She was eager to see Ace again, and little does she know that he was equally eager to see her. The Tuesday of the second week of school was the second DA meeting; Hermione ran quickly up to her dormitory after dinner to change. She changed into a gorgeous red track outfit with a black line going from her underarm right down to the bottom of her pants on both sides of her. She then put her hair up into a quick, messy (but great looking) bun, locked the door to her bedroom with a simple spell and made her way to the common room. Of course, who would be there but Malfoy? He seemed to only be around when it was convenient to him, and the most convenient times for him were the times when he could bother Hermione.

"So, where is the mudblood off to tonight?" Malfoy asked, his arms crossed as he leaned against the wall next to the exit.

"You've asked me this before, and the answer last time is the same this time. None of your business." Hermione snapped.

"Someone's grumpy." Malfoy sneered.

"You would be to if a mindless idiot kept calling you an extremely rude name." Hermione scorned.

Malfoy took this into consideration. He seemed to think it was best to pretend she didn't call him a mindless idiot. "Okay, then. Where is _Granger _off to tonight?"

Hermione looked at him skeptically. "Like that is so much better. I'm off to a place where I need to be, so if you'll excuse me…" Hermione walked past him and out of the portrait hole, but much to her dismay Malfoy was followed her.

"Hello, Draco!" One of the mermaids cried.

Malfoy winked at them before running to keep up with Hermione, who was rolling her eyes at the incredibly stupid mermaids.

"Malfoy, go away! You can't come!" Hermione cried, exasperated.

"Why not?" Malfoy asked. "Maybe I'm interested in this little self defense class that Pothead seems to think he can teach."

Hermione was speechless. "You… you know?" She stammered.

"Duh! Everyone in the pathetic school knows. Just because Slytherins don't want to waste their time attending doesn't mean that we don't know about it. We know _everything_."

"I'm sure you do." Hermione replied sarcastically, recovering from the shock. "Fine, you can come, but don't stand close to me or people will think we're friends or something."

"Are you sure Scarhead won't mind?" Malfoy smirked.

"He will if you call him that! No names, Malfoy. The DA is serious, okay? We want to learn and we want to be good. So just keep your mouth shut and listen to him."

Before Malfoy could reply, the two had stepped into the Room of Requirement, which was full of new students, but none could be identifiable as Slytherins. Hermione wandered off to find Harry and Ron, leaving Malfoy standing by himself.

"Hey, guys!" Hermione greeted. "Are we almost ready to start?"

"What the hell is he doing here?" Harry growled, referring to Malfoy.

"He wanted to come. You said yourself that anyone was welcome, and he was willing, so just don't cause any trouble, Harry." Hermione warned. "You're in charge, remember? People want a levelheaded leader."

Harry grunted to show he understood, but he was considerably moodier then he was before.

Once everyone had arrived (Hermione spotted Ace by himself in the same corner he stood in last time, and her heart gave a quick leap), Harry began instructing everyone; they would be practicing the Patronus Charm again, because half the people were new and hadn't practiced it, and hardly anyone in the other half had managed to master it.

"Okay, so if you could all divide up into pairs then we'll get started." Harry ordered after giving a quick and impressive demonstration of his Patronus.

Malfoy spotted Hermione at once. He began to walk towards her, wanting to ask her to be his partner. But-

"Hey, Hermione." Ace cut in front of Malfoy, smiling and holding out a hand. "Partner?"

Hermione's eye caught Malfoy as she glanced at him from over Ace's shoulder; he looked awkward, and she could tell he was about to ask her to be his partner. He quickly walked past her and Ace, trying to look as though he just happened to be strolling by.

Hermione snapped back into reality, looking up into Ace's gorgeous eyes. "Of course." She smiled, taking his hand and leading him to an empty space in the room where they could practice.

"Hey, do you guys want to practice with us?" A voice asked.

Hermione spun around and saw Lavender and Parvati practically drooling over Ace. Hermione definitely did not approve and she wanted to work with Ace alone, but so as not to be rude she accepted their invitation.

The three girls and Ace were practicing for about fifteen minutes before growing tired and taking a little break.

"So Ace, what is Durmstrang like?" Lavender asked, looking at him dreamily with her chin in her palm.

Ace shrugged. "It's okay." He got up and walked over to where Hermione was sitting. He plopped himself out so that he was sitting with his weight resting on his hands and his legs spread out so that Hermione was sitting in the middle of them.

Hermione giggled, while Parvati and Lavender looked extremely jealous.

"How old are you, Ace?" Parvati asked, trying to gain his attention.

"Turning nineteen." Ace asked. "Older than all of you by about a year and a half. That's why I'm so great at the Patronus. I was just telling sexy Hermione here yesterday that powerful magic is determined by the age of the wizard; the higher the age, the better the wizard actually is."

"I disagree." Ron appeared along with Harry, and both sat across from Hermione and Ace. Ace slid his arms around Hermione's midsection, which made her blush even madder (she was still red from Ace calling her sexy).

Harry looked disgustingly at Ace, probably for even touching Hermione in a more-than-friendly way. "Look at me. I thwarted Voldemort like five times, and he's way older than me. And now he's dead."

Everyone except Hermione and Ace flinched at the sound of Voldemort's name.

"Yes, well you're an exception." Ace said. "The fact is that I'm older than you and I can definitely kick your ass in a duel."

Ace wore a superior expression while Ron gave him a look of disbelief.

"Oh, yeah?" Harry asked. He stood up, but at the moment he was called over by Seamus and Dean, so he had no choice but to leave, but not before throwing Ace a dirty look as he walked away, followed closely by Ron.

Hermione was a bit taken aback at Ace's rude behavior, but she quickly disguised it, not wanting him to resent her.

"That was rude." Lavender stated. "Come on, Parvati." The two stood up and walked away as well.

"Finally, alone at last." Ace smiled.

Hermione smiled as well. She thought that he was very outgoing and outspoken, much like herself.

They spent the rest of the DA lesson practicing the Patronus Charm, but flirting endlessly (more Ace with Hermione then vice versa).

By the time the DA lesson ended, it felt as though the two hours had just flown by. Everyone was filing out of the Room of Requirement and Harry and Ron were cleaning up, yet keeping a very close eye on Hermione.

"Look, Hermione, I think you're really sexy." Ace said, bluntly. "Want to come to my dormitory tomorrow night?"

"Sure!" Hermione exclaimed, excitedly. "Where is it?"

"It's just a room across from the statue of Hector the Hated on the fifth floor. Come at nine o' clock?" Ace asked, hopefully.

"Definitely, but I have to be back by ten thirty."

"Great, then I'll see you then." He walked past Hermione to leave the room, and she gave a small yelp as he smacked her ass on the way out. She giggled to herself afterwards, though.

"Hermione," Harry started, advancing on her the minute Ace disappeared from sight. "Ron and I think it's best that you stay away from him. He's a funny character; you can't trust him. He's from Durmstrang, remember?"

Hermione grew angry. "Not everyone from Durmstrang is bad, you know!" she cried shrilly.

"Oh yes, of course. You have a certain knack for making friends from that school, don't you?" Ron jumped in. "How is old Vicky doing, anyway?"

"You two are so immature!" Hermione shouted. "I can see whoever I want, it's not up to you to decide! I didn't say anything when you dated Cho," (she pointed an accusatory finger at Harry.) "Or when you dated Luna, even though she's a bit of a lunatic!" (Her finger moved over to Ron.) "It's not up to you to decide who I see, so stop acting like two overprotective boyfriends or something!"

She stormed out of the Room of Requirement, leaving Harry and Ron looking stunned.

"We're her best friends, of course it's up to us to decide who she sees." Ron said.

"Mate, I think she's a bit upset with us." Harry noted in an agreeable voice as they locked up the Room of Requirement and headed towards the Gryffindor Tower.

Meanwhile, Hermione arrived at the portrait of the mermaids, fuming. "Coconut Ice!" She cried. The mermaids allowed her entrance without even glancing at her, but this was fine with her. She climbed through the hole and was greeted to the sight of Malfoy lying on the couch, reading one of the new books assigned for their seventh year.

"Where were you all night?" She asked, some of her anger evaporating.

"I left early." Malfoy said, simply. "I was bored."

"How could you have been bored?" Hermione asked. "Don't you want to learn the Patronus Charm?"

"Not really, seeing as I already know it." Malfoy said. His eyes found their way back to the book and began moving left to right. Hermione knew better than anyone not to interrupt anyone when they were reading, so she silently took her cloak off and slung it on the arm of a chair facing the fireplace. She then plopped herself down on the same chair and stared into the fire for a few moments before turning her head to glance at Malfoy.

"Why are you so different this year?" Hermione asked, suddenly.

"What do you mean, mudblood?" Malfoy asked in a bored voice, closing his book.

"You're not quite as mean as you usually are." Hermione stated, feeling quite stupid, as he had just called her a mudblood. "You're usually much more resentful and rude."

"Maybe I don't feel the need anymore." Malfoy said.

He did not continue, so this time it was Hermione's turn to ask, "What do you mean?"

"Wow, for someone who's supposed to be the most brilliant witch of her year, you sure are stupid right now."

Hermione looked highly insulted.

"In case you didn't know, my dad died last year." Malfoy said, stating the obvious. "I'm not quite in the mood to be as insulting anymore."

"Oh Malfoy, I'm so sorry." Hermione said genuinely.

"Whatever. You're glad. You and the golden boys and everyone else in this damn wizarding world. Yeah, he wasn't the best person in the world, but he was still a person. He was a husband and a father, and thanks to Mr Pothead, he's gone. Who do I have now? No one."

By instinct, Hermione stood up and stared at him in shock. She was quite sure Malfoy had never talked to anyone about this before. Malfoy seemed to notice her staring.

"Just forget about it, mudblood." He grinned. "If you would like me to be meaner, then that can be accomplished. _Jesterio!_"

Hermione's pants fell to her ankles, revealing matching bright red underwear.

"Malfoy!" She cried, shrilly. She quickly pulled her pants up and glared at Malfoy, who was laughing uncontrollably. "We had a deal! No magic for non-school purposes, remember!"

"Whatever, mudblood. I'm off to bed." He jumped up and ran off to bed, leaving Hermione fuming once more.


	6. A Night to Remember?

A Night to Remember?

Hermione ditched her homework for the second night in a row the next evening. She was too nervous to do any work, so instead she surfed through her closet, hunting for a sexy outfit to wear when she went to Ace's dormitory.

She had already thrown six outfits onto her bed, all of which she refused to wear. However, she did not give up. She continued to sift through all of her outfits, keeping her eye peeled for the perfect one. Suddenly, a dress caught her eye. It was very short, going less than halfway down her thigh. It was black and backless, and the front was shaped in a V, going down very low so it didn't completely cover her and a large amount of cleavage was revealed. _Is this _too _sexy? _She asked herself. _After all, he may just want me to come over as a friend to hang out or something. I may be giving him the wrong impression. _Hermione had never been on a date or anything remotely close to it, so it was difficult to decide whether she wanted to wear the dress or not. In the end she decided to wear it, thinking that no matter what Ace's intentions were, he would still appreciate how she looked.

So, putting her hair up in an elegant bun, she walked down to the common room.

_Holy shit! _Malfoy thought. He was lying on the couch reading the book that he was reading the previous night when Hermione emerged from the corridor leading to her bedroom. He gaped at her, his jaw dropped open. She looks _gorgeous. _Malfoy had always thought she was a dirty, ugly mudblood and nothing more, but at that moment he realized just how stunningly beautiful she actual was. Then he mentally kicked himself. _This is the mudblood who you've hated since you started Hogwarts. One dress doesn't change anything. _

As Hermione emerged, she spotted Malfoy in the same position as he was the previous night: lying on the couch and reading his book. His mouth was hanging open, but she noticed how quickly he recovered from the shock.

"Okay, I'm off." Hermione said. "See you."

"Wait!" Malfoy cried. He seemed to hear a hint of desperation in his voice, so he calmed himself down before speaking again. "Where are you going?"

"How many times are you going to ask me that!" Hermione cried.

"Shall I follow you again, then?" Malfoy smirked.

"No!" Hermione said quickly. "Look, I'm going to a friend's dorm. I'll be back by ten thirty, though."

"A friend?" Malfoy asked, interested. "A guy friend?"

"I'm not telling."

"It must be a guy." Malfoy prodded on. "I doubt you would dress like _that_ for a girl."

"Like what?" Hermione shot.

"Like _that._ It doesn't take a brain scientist to know that you're obviously trying to impress someone. Are you going to lose your virginity tonight, mudblood? Is that you're plan?" He smirked. "It's about time too, I was beginning to think you were somewhat of a square-"

_SMACK!_

Hermione slapped Malfoy round the face. He grabbed his face and stared at her in surprise. She lifted her hand to strike again, but thought better of it. "I will be back at ten thirty. Don't wait up." She walked through the portrait hole, leaving a stunned looking Malfoy behind her.

About ten minutes later, Hermione arrived at Ace's front door. It wasn't too difficult to find, but she had to go down several flights of stairs before reaching it. She lifted her hand and knocked.

The door opened, revealing Ace standing in the doorframe wearing baggy shorts and a large, white t-shirt. His face cracked into a smile as he checked Hermione out from head to toe. "Damn, you look sexy!" He exclaimed. Hermione blushed and made her way inside. His dorm was pretty much just one bedroom, but it was much bigger than the room that Hermione had.

"So, what do you want to do?" Ace asked her.

Hermione shrugged. "Anything is fine." She smiled.

"Great!" Ace said. "Strip poker?"

Something dropped to the pit of her stomach, but she laughed it off and shook her head.

"Spin the bottle?"

"With two people?" Hermione asked skeptically.

"Well, that would mean that there's only the chance of the bottle landing on either you or me." He grinned.

Hermione laughed again, but shook her head.

"Wanna watch a movie?" He asked. "My aunt managed to get my a television. It's some sort of muggle contraption, but it is so cool!"

"Um, okay." Hermione said. She took a seat on his sofa as he walked up to the VCR and slid a movie inside. A few moments later, Ace had taken a seat very close to Hermione and the word _Halloween _flashed on the TV.

"Halloween?" Hermione asked. She had watched that movie as a child, and it had terrified her to the bones.

"Sure. I love watching scary movies with girls." He grinned.

Hermione tried to grin back, but it was more a mix of a smile and fear towards the movie.

The movie went on for a while, and after every scene Ace seemed to make a move on Hermione. He slid his hand over her shoulders, then moved it to her thigh where he began to rub her.

Hermione thought it felt wonderful, but she also had a feeling this was moving a little bit too fast. After all, she had just met him. Besides, she had no experience with boys, so she wasn't quite sure what to do. She resorted to continuing to watch the movie in fear and trying to ignore Ace's fruitless attempts to seduce her.

About an hour and fifteen minutes into the movie, Ace leaned over and kissed her neck. This took Hermione by surprise, as she was terrified at what was going on in the movie. She didn't want to be rude and push him away, so she allowed him to continue. Ace took this a sign that he could go further, so be began to suck at her neck. Hermione thought this felt wonderful; she closed her eye and moved her hand over to his leg. Ace suddenly moved his hand up her dress, resting on her left breast. He squeezed harshly and felt a pang of joy when she let out a moan of pleasure and surprise. His other hand found its way up her dress to her other breast and both hands began to rub her nipples while he made his way back to her neck and continued to kiss it.

All of a sudden, Hermione came to her senses. She stood up so quickly that Ace jumped back in surprise.

"I have to go." Hermione said. "It's almost ten thirty and I promised my roommate that I would be back then."

"Oh." Ace said, sounding disappointed. "Wanna come back tomorrow?"

"Um, why don't you come to my dorm?" Hermione asked. She figured he might keep a bit of self-control when he was in her territory.

"Er… sure." He answered. "See you then."

Hermione quickly left his room and hurried down the corridor. She could not understand this; she really liked Ace. He was hot and sweet and no guy had ever made her feel like he did. But she just didn't feel ready for sex. She knew he wanted it, it was written all over his face. He hadn't even kissed her on the lips yet, just her neck and shoulder. But she liked him, and she wanted to continue to see him. She would just have to tell him the next night that she would not give him sex just yet, and he would have to take her for who she is.

Feeling better about the situation, she entered the portrait hole to her dormitory smiling. Malfoy was lying on the couch, apparently asleep. She crept past him and up to her bedroom, then fell on her bed, falling into a deep sleep with a huge smile across her face.


	7. Say No to Sex

Say No to Sex

Hermione awoke the next morning feeling refreshed and wonderful. The first thing that entered her mind was Ace. She just couldn't stop thinking about him. They didn't make boys like him at Hogwarts.

She pulled on a bathrobe and walked out into the common room. Her spirits were briefly brought down by the sight of him, but then she decided that she would not allow Draco Malfoy to ruin the feeling that she was having.

"Good morning." Malfoy greeted. He looked as though he had just woken up, so Hermione assumed he had slept there all night.

"Good morning to you too." Hermione replied. "Look, I would like to apologize for last night. As much of an asshole as you were, I shouldn't have resorted to violence. So, I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted." Malfoy said. Then, as an afterthought he added, "This time."

"Ha!" Hermione laughed. "I'll make sure that I won't screw up again then next time."

"Great." Malfoy said.

"Um, Malfoy, I was wondering-"

But he butt in. "I'm not going to be here tonight. Pansy and her roommates have invited me to a bit of a party so I expect I'll be out all night."

_Perfect! _Hermione thought. She was just about to ask him if he could clear off for a while tonight, but seeing as he was already not going to be there she felt no need to tell him that Ace would be coming over.

"What was it that you wanted?" He asked.

"Oh, nothing. I hope you enjoy the party." She smiled.

The first half of the day was exhausting, and Hermione was extremely thankful that lunch had finally arrived. She sat down with Harry and Ron, whom she had both apologized to for freaking out at them and they returned her apology (although they weren't quite sure what they were apologizing for).

Just as Hermione was finishing up her lunch, Ace appeared behind her.

"Hey, Hermione." He smiled.

Harry and Ron glared at him in disgust. Hermione, on the other hand, broke into a smile. "Hey."

"Wanna walk with me?" he asked. "Around the Forbidden Forest?"

Hermione's eyes widened.

"Not _in _the Forest. Just around it." Ace explained.

"Sorry, we're going to the library." Ron answered for her.

"Yeah, lots of work to do. Bye, Ace." Harry said, icily.

"Shut up!" Hermione hissed, embarrassed. "I'd love to walk with you." She turned to an astonished looking Harry and Ron. "Sorry, guys. I'll make it up to you, I promise!" And with that, she left them looking bewildered and betrayed as she walked hand-in-hand with Ace out of the Great Hall.

They walked along the skirt of the Forbidden Forest, casually talking about pointless things like life and family. Eventually Ace's hand moved from holding Hermione's to grabbing her waist. She was a bit taken aback at the sudden movement, but she smiled nonetheless and continued to walk with his arm around her waist. All of a sudden, he turned to face her and placed his remaining hand on her other hip. They slowly moved to her ass as he whispered, "Hermione, you're really hot."

"You're pretty hot yourself, Ace." She told him, giggling.

"I really want you. Like, really. It's almost unbearable, actually." He continued. Hermione was stunned.

"Um, Ace, I've been meaning to tell you. I'm not quite sure exactly what it is that you want, but I have to tell you that I'm definitely not ready to have sex."

"You're a virgin?" Ace asked. He sounded surprised.

"Um, yeah." Hermione answered. "And I'm just not ready for sex. I've never even had a proper boyfriend before. I just want to take this slow. Is that okay with you?"

Ace looked as though he was thinking it over, but he answered, "Yeah, definitely. You're worth the wait."

He leaned in until both of their foreheads were touching. They looked into each others eyes, and one thought was running through Hermione's mind: _Oh my god oh my god this is going to my first kiss! _They both stayed in this position for a few seconds, just gazing into each other's eyes with not even five inches separating them from each other. Then, Ace made the move. He brushed his lips against Hermione's. She felt overwhelmed; it was such a beautiful kiss. Light and gentle and sweet…

Then Ace began to kiss her harder. His lips smashed into her own, and before long his tongue was begging for admission into her mouth. Not knowing what to do, she followed her instinct and parted her lips so that Ace's tongue slid into her mouth. Their tongue's wrestled for quite some time before Hermione pulled away. She smiled and said, "We'd better be getting back to the castle. Lessons are due to start any second."

Ace grinned and once again slid his arm around Hermione's waist as they walked back to the Hogwarts castle.

That evening, Hermione raced around her common room fixing things up. She cleaned everything at least twice and lit several candles because they were so beautiful. Tonight she slipped into a hot pink tank top and short-shorts; she decided to dress more casually since she was in her own territory.

At nine o' clock on the dot, a knock came from outside the portrait hole. Smiling, Hermione walked over and opened it up, allowing Ace entrance to her home.

"Wow, so this is how the other half lives." Ace commented, glancing around. "Is your roommate-"

"He's out." Hermione said. "A party or something, so he shouldn't be back any time soon."

"Wonderful." Ace grinned, pulling Hermione into a kiss. This time there was much more force; he pried her lips open and nearly jammed his tongue down her throat. His hands moved up towards her breasts, and she quickly pulled away.

"So, um, what do you want to do?" Hermione asked, trying to cover up the awkward moment.

"Let's talk." Ace smiled. He took a seat on the sofa and patted the cushion next to him, indicating for Hermione to come and sit next to him. Once she took a seat, she turned to face him.

"What do you want to talk about?" She asked.

"Anything. Tell me about your childhood." Ace said.

"Okay." Hermione smiled. She went into the story of her childhood; how she was always smarter than the other kids in her class and no one really liked her for it.

"Aw, that must have been rough." Ace said. Hermione thought his voice sounded sincere, but it was far from it. As she was telling him bad memories, his hand once again slid onto her thigh. He rubbed her gently as she continued with her story, as though hoping she would shut up.

When Hermione was halfway though explaining the story about how she had arrived at Hogwarts, Ace made a move. He turned his body to completely face her and leaned in for a kiss.

_Hey, my story! _Hermione thought. _That was rather rude. _But she didn't mind kissing Ace, so she didn't say anything and just went along with it. She had already discussed the sex issue, so the furthest they would go was kissing and she was fine with that.

But then Ace's hand one again slid up her shirt. He massaged her breasts roughly as his tongue thrashed around in her mouth. Then, without warning, he pulled up her shirt so she was only sitting there in her bra.

_What's he doing? _Hermione asked herself.

Ace began to kiss her down her neck. He leaned into her harder so she fell over onto the couch with him on top of her. He began kissing down past her shoulders until he reached her belly button, where he began licking her.

_Okay, that's actually kind of gross. _Hermione thought. But she didn't want to stop him; she really liked him, and if this is what he wanted then who was she to stop him? If she did then she felt that he would for sure not like her.

"No sex, remember?" Hermione said.

"We can have fun without it." Ace smiled. He pulled her bra off without warning and kissed his way back up to her breasts. He began to bite at her nipple and lick around it, causing Hermione to moan slightly. This stimulated him to go further, so as he sucked at her nipple he also made to pull down her shorts. Soon Hermione was sitting there in the middle of her common room wearing only her underwear. She had not even been giving a warning that he was going to take off her bra, otherwise she would have said something.

"Okay, Ace, that's far enough. Actually, too far. I want my bra." She made to reach for it, but he moved up and began kissing her passionately while rubbing her breasts at the same time.

"Come on Hermione, please? I really want you. This is the only way I can have you. Just please, don't deny me this." Ace begged.

"I'm sorry, but I'm just not ready." Hermione said.

Ace did not seem to want to take no for an answer. Within seconds he had reached down and began to pull down Hermione's panties while he went back to kissing her breast.

"Ace, please, no-" Hermione began.

"Um, what's going on?" A voice asked behind them.

_Malfoy! _Hermione thought. _Thank god. Oh god I'm naked in front of Malfoy!_

"What the hell are you doing?" Malfoy demanded of Ace as Hermione grabbed her shirt to cover herself up with. "Obviously the girl doesn't want to fuck you, so get off of her!"

"You don't know what you're talking about." Ace smirked. "Get the hell out of here, we're busy."

"You're busy?" Malfoy said. "You're busy?" He began laughing, taking Ace and Hermione by surprise. He continued to laugh, clutching his ribs and wiping (fake) tears from his eyes. Then out of nowhere he withdrew his wand, pointed it directly at Ace and cried, "_Petrificus Totalus!_" Ace became stiff as a board and fell over onto the floor.

Hermione was shaking. She really liked Ace and she thought that he really liked her; after all, they had shared her first kiss. Why would he kiss her if he didn't like her? But then if he liked her, why would he disrespect her wishes like that? She began to cry, confused beyond words. Is this what a relationship was supposed to be like? _If it is, then relationships are crap. _She thought.

Malfoy stood there awkwardly. "What are you doing?" he asked her. He saw silent tears pouring down her face, making him feel even more awkward. "Don't… don't _cry_." He saw her bra lying at his feet and he quickly swept it up and threw it at her, turning away as she dressed herself. When he felt sure that the coast was clear, he turned and looked at her, and much to his dismay, she was still crying.

Unaware of what to do, he walked slowly towards Hermione and took a seat on the couch next to her. "I said that you were gonna lose your virginity-"

Hermione began bawling more. Tears streamed down her face. Malfoy's eyes widened in shock and fear; he did not mean to make her cry more. He was just stating that what he said was the truth, even though Hermione and Ace clearly didn't get that far.

He glanced at her and she was bent over, her face in her hands with her elbows resting on her knees. He awkwardly patted her on her back. _Please stop crying. _He begged to himself. He couldn't stand to see girls' cry, even if it was a filthy little mudblood like Granger.

Hermione looked up and into the mysterious gray eyes of Draco Malfoy. "What are you doing?" She asked him.

"I don't know!" Malfoy cried. He abruptly stopped patting her back. "I figured this is what you were supposed to do in a situation like this."

Hermione actually laughed, which sounded oddly muffled by her tears. "Malfoy, you are such a boy!"

"What the hell does that mean!" Malfoy demanded. "You're sitting here crying like a baby and I just did what I thought I was supposed to do. Excuse me if girls don't always cry in my presence."

Hermione laughed again, then looked down at Ace sprawled on the floor and began crying again. "I really like him." She told Malfoy. "I can't really understand it, though. I've only known him for a few days, but there's this connection that is just totally unreal. But he's really…er_… into _sex. That's pretty much all he wants from me. But I know he likes me!"

"Okay, this is the first rule in life you need to know if you want to start getting interested in guys." Malfoy explained. "The biggest thing most of us want from a girl is sex, okay? It's fun, entertaining and very, very hot."

Hermione glared at him.

"Well, it is! Anyways, you've waited a bit too late to start dating. I think the only guy you can find in this school who _doesn't _just want sex is Pothead." Malfoy began to laugh.

"What's so funny?" Hermione asked, wiping away a tear.

"The thought of you going out with that idiot!" Malfoy laughed even harder. "I mean, yeah, you're a bit of a square and you're a filthy mudblood, but you can definitely do way better than Potter!"

Hermione didn't know what to say. Malfoy had just insulted her as he always does, but he had also complimented her in a strange, unobtrusive sort of way.

"Can you please get rid of him?" Hermione whispered, indicating Ace.

"Oh, right." Malfoy nodded. He felt odd. He had actually just complimented Granger, something he'd sworn that he would never do. To cover up the discomfort that they were both feeling, he performed a charm that levitated Ace out of the common room.

"Where did you put him?" Hermione asked.

"Just outside the common room." Malfoy answered. "Once Filch sees him he'll be taken care of right away."

Hermione felt a twinge of guilt, though. This part of the castle was exceptionally deserted, so how long would it be before Filch found Ace? Perhaps Ace was hurt, but too unconscious to say anything.

"Um, I think I'm going to go to bed." Malfoy said, trying to cover up the immense amount of awkwardness he was feeling. "Are you gonna be okay?"

"Yes." Hermione answered automatically. "Goodnight."

"Um, g'nite." Malfoy replied. He got up and walked at a fast pace towards his bedroom. Hermione did not make a move until she could here his door shut. Then, she quickly got up and exited the portrait hole. Lying there a few feet away was Ace. He was stirring, so Hermione knew he was all right. She walked over to where he was lying and knelt down next to him.

"I am _so _sorry." She whispered.

"What the hell was that?" Ace asked. He lifted himself up into a sitting position and held his head as though he had a major headache.

"Um, I think Malfoy kind of got the wrong impression." Hermione lied. In truth, he was right on the money.

"I don't have to put up with this, Hermione." Ace warned. "I'm almost nineteen, okay? I can probably get any girl at this stupid school, but I really like you. I'm not going to stand around while your junior roommate pushes me around. Understand?"

Hermione nodded obediently. "I'm sorry." She repeated.

"Hey, no sweat." Ace grinned, still holding his head.

"But I'm really not ready for sex." Hermione pushed, feeling this was the right moment. "I've never even had a real relationship. This is my first, and I want it to be perfect. You understand, don't you?" She pleaded.

Ace looked at her skeptically for a moment, then grinned and said, "Sure. Sex can come later."

"But what if it doesn't?" Hermione whispered.

"What?" Ace asked.

"What if it doesn't come?" she repeated. "If I'm not ready now, I'm not sure if I will be ready in a months time or even a years time. These things slowly progress, and I'm not going to do anything that I don't feel ready to do."

"Sex is a natural thing!" Ace cried. "You're seventeen! That's what you're supposed to be doing. It's fun! Come on, Hermione! Never is a long time."

"Ace, please. If you won't accept my wishes then I can't do this-"

"Okay, fine." Ace caved. "What comes will come."

Feeling that this was the best that she was going to get, she decided not to push him anymore. "Okay, then. I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye." Ace said. He picked himself up and turned the corner out of sight, leaving Hermione to stew in her own thoughts.


	8. Rejection at its Finest

Rejection at it's Finest

"Hogsmeade weekend coming up." Harry noted as he sat outside under a great oak tree with Ron.

"Sounds like it's going to be fun." Hermione had just showed up and was greeted by a cold shoulder from both Harry and Ron.

"Come on, guys!" Hermione cried. "You know I wouldn't mind if one of you wanted to go someplace with a girl!"

Ron smirked. "Sure you wouldn't."

Hermione glared at him, but decided not to persist. "Okay, I'm sorry. I screwed up. Can you forgive me?"

Harry and Ron took a moment to think. "You ditched us." Harry stated.

_Duh. _Hermione thought. "I know, but it was for a good cause, honest!"

"You know we don't like the guy, Hermione." Ron said.

"Yes, I know. But this is my thing, okay? I'm sorry you don't approve, but I really like Ace. I wish you guys could accept that but if you can't then don't jeopardize our friendship over it."

Harry looked thoughtful. "Fine, I forgive you."

"Me too." Ron agreed.

"But don't ditch us again." Harry warned. "I may not be so forgiving next time."

"Ha ha." Hermione laughed, sarcastically. Harry grinned.

"So, what are we doing the Hogsmeade weekend?" Harry asked.

"Um, I think I'll probably be with Ace." Hermione blushed, sheepishly.

"And I have a… er… _date._" Ron stammered.

"With who!" Harry demanded.

Hermione sighed, thankfully. Ron's date took their minds off of her ditching them again.

"With Hannah Abbott." Ron was blushing madly. "She asked me if I'd fancy going into Hogsmeade with her, and I said sure."

Harry grinned. "Nice one!"

"So what are you going to do, then?" Ron asked Harry.

"I suppose I'll just hang out with Seamus and Dean." Harry said. "That's fine."

"Great!" Hermione grinned. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got someplace to be."

She leapt up and left so quickly that neither Harry nor Ron had a chance to ask her what place it was that she had to be at.

Hermione ran up to the castle straight for Ace's dorm. Once she reached the room across from the statue of Hector the Hated, she raised her hand and knocked loudly three times.

Ace answered the door wearing a towel around his waist. His hair was wet and dripping; obviously he had just stepped out of the shower.

"Um, hi." Hermione said, awkwardly.

"Hey!" Ace smiled. "Come in."

Hermione walked into his dorm and took a seat on the sofa.

"What's up?" he asked, still grinning.

"Nothing, I just wanted to see you." Hermione said, blushing.

"Well you know I always want to see you, baby." Ace said, slickly. He sat down next to her and gently kissed her lips.

_Now this is what I like. _Hermione said to herself. Ace's hands held Hermione's face as she played with his hair, twirling it with around finger. He continued to kiss her without jamming his tongue down her throat, and she kissed him back, thoroughly enjoying the moment.

However, the next second Ace pushed Hermione down on the couch and straddled her, her body between his legs. He leaned down and kissed her passionately, not even bothering to ask for admission before he forced his tongue into her mouth. She kissed him back, lost in the moment. Once again Ace's hands found there way up Hermione's shirt as his tongue coarsely wrestled her, and Hermione felt this becoming yet another near-sex situation. _What the hell did I _just _tell him! _Hermione thought.

She pushed him away from her. "Come on, Ace! Don't you listen!"

"I'm sorry, Hermione!" Ace cried. "But I get carried away when I'm around you! I can't help it!"

"Then I should probably go." Hermione smiled.

"Fine." Ace said, a bit angrily.

"Well, bye then." She got up and left his dorm, clutching her heart as she shut the door behind her. _Why does he find it so difficult to not have sex? Why can't we just talk for a change? _Hermione thought. _He started tonight off so nicely, but then he had to feel me up again. _

Hermione felt so absentminded that she was startled to come face-to-face with the portrait of the mermaids. "Coconut Ice!" She said hurriedly because the redheaded mermaid was tapping her fins impatiently on the vast rock she was lying on.

Thankfully, Malfoy was not in the common room at the time. Hermione felt awkward since the previous night; for one, Malfoy had actually done her a favor, and secondly he had complimented her in an odd sort of way. Why was he so different? After all, you'd think that since the demise of his father that he would loathe Hermione even more than he already did, but obviously that was not the case. She halfheartedly expected him to stand there last night watching her cower on the sofa, enjoying her being naked and crying.

A spur of the moment impulse told her that she wanted to take a bath at that moment. She made her way to the enormous bathroom and looked longingly at the infinite bathtub (more like a mini swimming pool) as she undressed herself. She slipped into the tub and began playing with the various taps before deciding on purple bubbles with a light, lilac scent.

Just as she began to feel soothed and rested, two people burst through the door.

A giggling Pansy Parkinson was clutching Malfoy's hand as he pulled her inside the bathroom. Thankfully for Hermione both of them were wearing robes, but obviously fancied going for a nice little "swim".

"Oh." Malfoy said awkwardly as he spotted Hermione in the tub.

"MALFOY!" Hermione shrieked.

Pansy let out a groan. "Drakie-Poo, can't you get rid of her?" she pleaded, shooting murderous glances at Hermione. Hermione was totally covered by the colorful bubbles, so she didn't feel too self-conscious at the moment.

Malfoy took Pansy's hand and led her outside of the bathroom. Hermione strained her ears to hear what he was saying.

"Look, baby, we'll continue this some other time when the mudblood's not around, okay?" he bargained.

"But Drakie-"

"We have all year." Malfoy said. "Now go on." Hermione could sense that they shared one last goodbye kiss before she heard the portrait slam shut beyond the exiting Pansy.

Much to Hermione's surprise, Malfoy reentered the bathroom.

"What the hell!" Hermione cried.

He walked over to an immense cabinet on the other side of the bathroom and withdrew two bathing suits: one for a guy and one for a girl. He threw the two-piece at Hermione and turned the other way as he slipped into the swimming trunks. Then, without warning, he slipped into the bathtub.

"MALFOY!" Hermione screeched again. She quickly and carefully began putting the bathing suit on under the water. "I am trying to have a bath!"

"Yes, well I fancied a bath and there's no way I'm not going to have it just because a little mudblood is it." Malfoy said simply.

"I'm surprised you'd risk bathing in the same water as a filthy little mudblood." Hermione said sarcastically. She was surprised at his decency to throw her a bathing suit and put one on himself, considering he was all for getting naked at every possible chance.

"What can I say, I'm a risk-taker." Malfoy replied.

Hermione rolled her eyes and tried to continue with the soothing feeling she had felt before Malfoy and his cow rudely interrupted her.

"So, seen that toad today?" Malfoy asked.

"What _toad?_" Hermione retorted sharply.

"That Ace guy." Malfoy said with great dislike.

"That is none of your business!" Hermione cried, trying to distance herself as far away as possible from him.

"I'll take that as a yes." Malfoy presumed. "I'm surprised that he's conscious. I guess next time I'll have to use a more painful spell-"

"Shut up!" Hermione shrieked.

Malfoy looked taken aback. "You don't still _like _him, do you!"

"So what if I do?" Hermione replied, defensively.

"You know he only wants sex! That's the only reason he's with you, Granger." Malfoy smirked. "If it weren't for you appearing so easy, he wouldn't have taken a second glance-"

That pushed Hermione's buttons to the limit. She leaped over to where Malfoy was bathing and pressed both of her hands on the top of his head, pushing him under water. Enormous bubbles began to rise to the surface, but Hermione did not care; she was so pissed off at him that she just wanted to see how long he would suffocate for before finally returning to the surface. Malfoy thrashed around uncontrollably before finally conquering Hermione and coming back up. He took a large gulp of air.

"What the hell is your problem!" Malfoy demanded.

Hermione ignored him. Instead, she reached for her towel and departed from the bathtub. "Fuck you, Malfoy." She said before leaving the bathroom altogether.

She was so angry that she decided to visit Ace once more that evening. If he wanted another heavy make out session, then that was fine with her. She needed something to keep her mind off of everything that was making her angry, and Ace always seemed to be able to do just that.

Before she knew it, she was approaching Ace's front door and banging hard three times.

Ace answered the door, this time fully clothed.

"Hey, Hermione." He said with less enthusiasm then usual.

"Hey," Hermione smiled. "I really need someone to talk to-"

She immediately noticed that Ace seemed distracted, almost hesitant.

"What's up?" Hermione asked, apprehensively.

"Look, I think we should just be friends." Ace said, quickly.

"Wha… What?" Hermione stammered, confused.

"This just isn't working for me. You're sweet and everything, but I don't think I'm ready for a girlfriend yet. Sorry." And with that, he closed the door in Hermione's shocked and confused face.


	9. The Hogsmeade Fiasco

The Hogsmeade Fiasco

The next few days were really tough for Hermione. She kept herself locked up in her bedroom most of the time, rethinking everything that happened. She was miserable, but with all of that alone time in her room, Ace was the only thing that she _could _think of. Why had he "dumped" her? They were getting along so great; Hermione let him kiss her and let him touch her so what was she doing wrong? It couldn't possibly have been the sex issue, because he already said that he was fine with waiting. And what was with that breakup anyway? She couldn't even call it a breakup, because they weren't even dating in the first place! If he just wanted to be friends, then what the hell were they before that? He claims he doesn't want a girlfriend but they weren't even dating! _And I miss him so much, _Hermione constantly thought to herself.

She wanted to ask him to go to Hogsmeade with her, but obviously that was out of the question. However, Harry and Ron would not allow her skip out on it altogether.

"Come on, Hermione!" Ron urged. "You can't let that little shit head run your life! You can't miss out on fun just because of him!"

"Yeah!" Harry agreed. "And now you can hang out with me so I'm not stuck with Dean and Seamus the whole time!"

"Hey!" Dean and Seamus cried from a few seats down the Gryffindor table in the Great Hall.

Harry ignored them, but smiled nonetheless to let them know he was joking. "Hermione, please come! We'll do whatever you want to get your mind off of that jerk!"

Hermione thought for a moment. "Fine." She finally said. "But there better be at least one moment where I'm not thinking of him otherwise I might just go crazy."

Ron looked at her oddly. He was wondering how women could become so crazily obsessed with a guy, especially a guy who was a major creep. By the look on Harry's face, Ron could tell that he was thinking the same thing.

The morning of the Hogsmeade trip finally arrived. Hermione emerged into the common room only to be welcomed by Malfoy sitting on the couch sipping his morning coffee.

"I have to go somewhere." She informed him, grabbing her purse and heading for the portrait hole.

"Wait!" Malfoy cried. Hermione turned to face him. "Where are you going?" he asked.

"To see Ace." She replied. This took Malfoy aback; he was used to hearing her say "That's none of your business."

"Oh come on, Hermione!" Malfoy cried, exasperated. "You know the man is a prick. Just let things be, okay? He rejected you, he doesn't like you, so you shouldn't waste your time on him-"

Hermione did not hear the rest of Malfoy's speech. She climbed through the portrait hole and descended down the stairs and towards Ace's room with her now-familiar route. She knocked and waited. And waited. And waited. Several moments later, Ace answered the door. He was wearing only his boxers and he appeared to have lipstick smudged all over his face. Hermione raised her eyebrow at him as he began to turn a very deep shade of red. She peered over his shoulder and saw Parvati Patil sitting on his couch, the buttons of her shirt hastily done up and her hair flying everywhere.

"Oh my god." Hermione whispered. She immediately turned and began walking quickly in the opposite direction.

"Hermione," Ace called. "Hermione! Hermione, wait!"

Hermione stopped abruptly. She turned and faced Ace, pleased to see that his face was flushed and he was obviously embarrassed about the situation.

"Not ready for a girlfriend, huh?" She shot at him.

"Parvati is _not _my girlfriend." Ace said. "We just… fool around a bit."

"And I was no fun to fool around with!" Hermione demanded.

"No, it's not that. It's just that you had limits. Parvati doesn't."

"You know, I came here wanting to talk things out with you, but at the moment I can't even look at you properly. I'm leaving. Have fun in Hogsmeade."

She turned on her heel and ran as fast as possible the minute she turned the corner and was out of sight.

"Um, Hermione-" Ron began. Harry sent him a piercing look that immediately made him shut up. So, the trio walked to Hogsmeade in silence.

"Why aren't you with Hannah?" Harry asked Ron, to cover up the awkward silence.

"We're going to meet in the Three Broomsticks." Ron explained. "Then she's going to take me to a little coffee shop… Madam Puddlefoot's or something like that."

Harry began to cough at the name, but pounded hard on his chest so rapidly that the coughing died away rather quickly.

"You all right, mate?" Ron asked him.

"Yeah, but I suggest you try to steer clear of that damn shop." Harry said, bitterly.

"Um, okay." Ron agreed, hesitantly.

Once they reached the village of Hogsmeade, Ron said goodbye and departed for the Three Broomsticks.

"So, what do you want to do?" Harry asked her.

"I think I'd fancy going to the Three Broomsticks as well, if you don't mind." Hermione said. It was the first time she spoken since muttering a quiet hello to Harry and Ron back at the castle.

"Brilliant." Harry smiled.

So, the two followed a feet behind Ron to the Three Broomsticks. Once they got inside, they immediately snatched a small table with Seamus, Dean and Neville on their left and Ron and Hannah on their right.

"We meet again!" Ron joked.

Hannah smiled politely at Harry and Hermione.

"I'll go grab us a couple of drinks, Harry." Hermione offered, anxious to get away from the hustle and bustle of the happy go lucky students around her.

When she reached the bar, she ordered two Butterbeers from the barman and sat by herself, waiting for her drinks. Over on the opposite side of the room from where Harry was sitting, Hermione spotted that familiar flicker of brown and golden hair. Ace's face was visible through the sea of students; he was sitting very close together with Parvati Patil, and Hermione saw his hand rubbing her and up down her thigh. _He used to do that to me. _Hermione thought, sadly.

"Why, if it isn't the little mudblood." A voice drawled.

Hermione sighed. "Hello, Malfoy."

"Granger." He nodded. He glanced over to where Hermione was gazing and saw Ace with Parvati. "Look awfully cozy, don't they?"

"Shut up." Hermione said.

"Told ya he just wanted sex." Malfoy said. "It's not your fault, of course. Everyone's a bit of a square at some point in their life."

"I am not a square!" Hermione cried.

"Sure, sure." Malfoy nodded, obviously not believing her.

"Fine then." Hermione said. "Fine. Who's the one guy you don't want to see me with?"

"I don't want to see you with anyone." Malfoy said. He immediately caught what he said; he sounded as though he wanted her for himself or something. "What I mean to say is that I enjoy you being unhappy." He covered up.

"Right, but if it had to be anyone, who would you not want me with?" Hermione demanded.

"Besides that Ace idiot?" Malfoy asked.

"Sure. Besides Ace."

"Okay then, that's obvious. Potter. Like I said, even you can do better than-"

But Hermione did not hear the rest of his speech. She marched away from him, but she was sure he still had his eyes on her. She felt them follow her all the way to where Harry, Ron and Hannah were sitting. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Ace watching her as well. She grabbed Harry's shirt with both of her hands and pulled him up towards her, leaning in for a long, hot, steamy kiss that was viewed by almost the entire audience in the Three Broomsticks, including Malfoy and Ace.

Once Hermione released Ron, she turned to look at Malfoy. His mouth was dropped open; if this were cartoon, it would have been hitting the floor. He looked disgusted, but also slightly impressed. Then, for a split second Hermione's glance moved over to Ace. He was also watching her (much to Parvati's dismay). However, this was an odd look. It was as though he resented her for kissing Harry. _Serves him right. _Hermione told herself. After all, he had moved on with Parvati, so why shouldn't she have the right to kiss any guy she wanted?

"Wow, Hermione." Harry said. "What… what was that?"

"Um, nothing-" Hermione began.

"Hermione!" Ron cried. "Hello! Major PDA!"

"PDA?" Hermione asked.

"Public Display of Affection. Big time." Hannah laughed.

"Er, Hermione… I'd… er… fancy a chat with you, if you don't mind." Harry stammered.

"Okay." Hermione agreed, reluctantly. What was this about now?

"Well, you see…" Harry began as the two left the Three Broomsticks and took a seat on the stone steps outside. "I sort of…er… fancy you." Harry spluttered. "And I wanted to know if you'd go out with me?"

"No!" Hermione cried. She realized how rude she must have sounded about a split second after she said it. "I mean… well… oh boy. How do I put this? Harry, you're a really great guy, and I love you and everything, but just as a brother. We couldn't date even if I wanted to." Hermione explained. "Which I don't." She added after spotting the glimmer of hope flickering across Harry's face.

"Then why'd you kiss me!" Harry demanded.

"It was… impulse." She answered.

"Impulse? Impulse because you must like me!" Harry insisted.

"Oh no, I can assure you I don't." Hermione said. "Not in that way, anyway."

"How can you just get a guy's hopes up like that and then shoot them down the next minute. Have you no heart?" Harry persisted.

"Harry, I'm trying to get over this difficult thing with Ace, okay? It was probably just some sort of rebound-type action, nothing else-"

"Fine." Harry said. "FINE!" he stood up and reentered the Three Broomsticks, pushing his way through the crowd until he took a seat with Ron, looking sulky.

Hermione sighed. _Dammit! Why did I just do that? It was Malfoy, that's why. I knew it'd piss him off. That seems to just be my goal, doesn't it? Pissing off Mr Malfoy. Well, it's just lost me a friend. Thanks a lot, Malfoy-_

"Pinny for your thought." A voice drawled.

Hermione turned and saw Malfoy standing behind her.

"A _what _for my thoughts?" she asked.

"A pinny. I don't know… it's like a muggle type of money. It's a cliché! You're a mudblood, I thought you'd know what it was-"

"I do!" Hermione said, laughing. "But it's _penny, _not pinny."

"Whatever." Malfoy said. "So, that was a great show in there." He jerked his thumb to indicate the Three Broomsticks.

"Yeah, didn't you just love it?" Hermione teased.

"I did, in a sickening, want-to-throw-up-all-over-the-person-sitting-next-to-me kind of way." Malfoy said.

"Ha! You know, you're pretty funny Draco-"

"What did you call me?" Malfoy asked.

Hermione clapped her hand over her mouth, horrified at what she had said. "I called you Malfoy!" she said, hoping he wouldn't have caught it.

"No you didn't, you called me Draco!" Malfoy said, superiorly.

"Okay, fine, I called you Draco. I'm so sorry." Hermione said sarcastically.

"It's okay, just don't let it happen again." Malfoy said. "And don't expect me to call you Hermione, because it's not going to happen."

"Fair enough." Hermione said. She pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them, savoring the warmth.

"Wanna go somewhere?" Malfoy offered.

"Excuse me?"

"You know… _somewhere. _We're in Hogsmeade and we're sitting on the step of the Three Broomsticks. Not much fun. Shall we go to the candy shop? Or Zonko's?"

"You know what, I want to go to Zonko's." Hermione said. "I've never enjoyed it there, but I'm in the mood for a change of pace."

"Okay then, let's go." Malfoy said. He stood up and offered out his hand. Hermione took it and Malfoy lifted her up easily. She brushed the dirt off of her bottom and began walking towards Zonko's with Malfoy.

"Just don't walk too close." Malfoy warned. "People might think we're together or something."

"Oh, what a tragedy." Hermione teased. "The Great Draco Malfoy caught walking with a little mudblood on the streets of Hogsmeade. Major catastrophe, there. It's gonna be all over the Daily Proph--- Ouch!"

Hermione had stopped in mid-sentence, because a snowball had just collided with her face. "Malfoy!" She cried. Inquisitively, she looked around. It was not winter, so she did not understand what all of the snow was about. Then she realized that the snow was only around herself and Malfoy; apparently he had said a spell that caused snow to fall only around them. She bent over and scooped up a wad of snow, packing it into a ball as she eyed Malfoy doing the same thing. Once her snowball had formed nicely, she ducked behind a shop and cast a growth charm on it, causing it to swell to three times its normal size. Peaking around a corner, she realized Malfoy was nowhere in sight. Suddenly, a large snowball came zooming at her head; she instinctively ducked and immediately threw her gigantic snowball at Malfoy, who fell over right on his ass.

"One for Granger, zero for Malfoy." Hermione laughed, walking towards Zonko's and leaving Malfoy to sit in his own pile of snow, rubbing his ass with a pained expression on his face.


	10. The Extra Long Detention

The Extra Long Detention

Over the next few weeks, Hermione and Malfoy grew to be almost friends, although Malfoy would never admit it. He refused to let it be known to the public that they no longer despised each other, so he and Hermione only hung out in the privacy of their own common room. They played muggle games (like Twister) and wizard games (like Wizards Chess), which Hermione could still not conquer. However, they never spoke about their feelings towards anything. Hermione did not want to talk about Ace with Malfoy, and Malfoy didn't really want to talk about anything with Hermione. So, it was a pretty fair situation.

However, no matter how much she was trying to move on and enjoy Malfoy's company, Hermione could not get Ace off of her mind. Perhaps it was because he was her first kiss, or perhaps it was because he had dumped her so suddenly without anything so much as a warning, but no matter what it was it was tearing Hermione up inside. She kept thinking about going to talk to him, but what good would that do? None, that's what.

Harry and Ron weren't talking to Hermione, either. Hermione believed that Harry had told Ron his twisted version of the story and Ron sided with Harry, like he always does. So, Hermione was left eating every meal by herself and sitting by herself in classes. Malfoy made it all a bit more bearable though; during class he would magically levitate notes to Hermione; some were jokes, some were topics of conversation and some were rude drawings of whichever professor happened to be teaching at the time.

Anyway, during a particularly boring Potions lesson, a note came flittering under Hermione's desk. She saw her name scribbled hastily on it and opened it to reveal one word: _Twister? _She accidentally laughed out loud, reminiscing about the last time that they played Twister when Malfoy fell flat on his face and threw a hissyfit because he lost.

"Miss Granger, I would appreciate it if you would pay attention in my class and not send private love letters to Potter." Snape sneered. Across the room, Harry was turning a violent shade of red.

"Sorry sir, I-" Hermione began.

"_Accio parchment!_" Snape ordered, pointing his wand at the note. Once it reached his hand, he read it aloud. "Twister. What does this mean, Potter?"

Harry looked bewildered at being addressed by Snape for writing a letter that he most obviously did not write. "I'm not sure, sir. Maybe it's a warning."

The whole class cracked up laughing, causing Snape to give them all two hours worth of detention that night. Everyone turned their nose down at Harry as they filed past him, causing Harry to fume. He walked straight up to Hermione as she was packing her Potions things into her bag.

"I don't know what the hell you're doing or who you're sending little love letters to, but I would appreciate it if you didn't make the class hate me and think that we were girlfriend and boyfriend, because that's obviously what you don't want to be!" Harry cried.

"I'm sorry, Harry!" Hermione apologized. "Snape jumps to his own conclusions, I didn't initiate-"

"Save it, Hermione!" Harry said. He turned and left without a backwards glance, beckoning for Ron to follow him.

"Oh, what a shame." A voice drawled from behind Hermione. She turned to see the unpleasant Snape standing there. "The love triangle has been fractured by the insufferable know-it-all. How is Mr Krum doing anyways? Are you with Potter by day and Krum by night? Perhaps you're breaking curfew and sneaking off to Durmstrang to see Mr Krum. It wouldn't surprise me; you and Potter never did seem to abide by the rules-"

"Shut up, Professor!" Hermione cried. The _professor _seemed to have a slight bit of respect in the otherwise rude outburst. "You have no idea what my love life is like, okay! None at all, and I'd appreciate if you stopped trying to butt in, too!"

"That's another hour for you on tonight's detention, Miss Granger. And twenty points off of Gryffindor for pure disrespect to your teacher." Snape sneered.

"Professor, perhaps that's a little harsh." Apparently Malfoy had been listening the whole time. "Granger's had a rough time, she's just a bit touchy-"

"Do wonders never cease? Mr Malfoy has developed feelings for Miss Granger here. An hour on top of tonight's detention for you too, Mr Malfoy, for disputing my actions. I'll see you both tonight." He grinned evilly and left the classroom.

The silence between Malfoy and Hermione was incredibly awkward; why had Snape gone and said that Malfoy had feelings for Hermione? _As if. _Hermione thought to herself.

"You know what mudblood, this is obviously not working out." Malfoy said. "Us being friends just won't fly. Others will hate it and it's evidently getting us into trouble, so if you don't mind I'm going to go back to the way things were before you starting getting all sappy-"

"_I _started getting sappy!" Hermione exclaimed. "You're the one who invited yourself to join me in the bathtub and you're the one who started that little snowball fight back then, not me!"

"It was fun while it lasted, Granger." Malfoy smirked. He turned and followed Snape out of the classroom, leaving Hermione to watch one of the only friends she had walk out of her life.

That night, Hermione prepared to go to her detention. Once she arrived there, she realized she was early because there was no one else present in the room. She took a seat and waited until students started filing into the room ten minutes later. She spotted Harry and Ron (who gave her a dirty look). She had been prepared to make up with them after the detention, but when they gave her that look she immediately decided against it. _Screw them. If they want to be immature little children then that's their problem, not mine. _Then Hermione spotted the last person she would have expected to be there: Ace McGonagall. He was one of the lasts to enter the room, looking as sexy as ever. Clearly he had gained himself a detention from Snape as well for one reason or another. Hermione could not see how Snape could do that; after all, Ace was not a student, therefore Snape should not have been able to put him in detention_. Perhaps McGonagall gave permission to the teachers in case Ace was misbehaving. _Hermione thought.

About five seconds before the detention was due to start, Malfoy strutted into the classroom. He looked infinitely bored as he took a seat by himself at the far end of the room. Snape was right behind him.

"You all know why you're here. Because of Potter's smart mouth. Keep that in mind." Snape directed. "Detention starts now. No talking. You can all spend these two hours thinking about Potter ruining all of your evenings."

Everyone shot a murderous look at Harry, who was blushing madly. Hermione felt a pang of guilt.

"I'm not here because of Potter." Ace muttered.

"Excuse me, Mr McGonagall?" Snape demanded.

"I said I'm not here because of Potter." Ace repeated. "I refuse to give Potter the satisfaction of dragging my ass here, thank you."

As much as Snape looked as though he enjoyed Ace's resentment towards Harry, he said, "Then we shall tell the class why you're here, although Weasley is already aware. Mr McGonagall seems to believe that because he is the relative of a high figure of authority at this school, he has the right to perform magic in the hallways."

"I never said-" Ace began.

But Snape interrupted. "Oh yes, I'm sure that several of you are curious why Mr McGonagall chose to break the rules. Well, it is all because of our insufferable know-it-all, Hermione Granger." Hermione looked shocked and began to turn a deep shade of red as the class all turned to look at her. "It appears as though her love triangle has become a love square, which Mr Weasley was only too eager to point out to Mr McGonagall earlier this evening, causing Mr McGonagall to perform advanced magic on Mr Weasley. Thank the heavens that Mr Weasley was okay." Snape said, not sounding at all concerned. "I warn all of the boys in this room right now, watch out for Miss Granger. She is not only an intolerable little girl, but also an intolerable heartbreaker." Snape finished, sounding superior and proud.

Ace and Harry glared at Snape, then at each other. Hermione stifled a sob; how could her professor embarrass her so immensely in front of her classmates?

"Oh, and Mr McGonagall, you're unnecessary outburst has earned you another hour of detention this evening." Snape ordered. "And the next person to talk will also get an extra hour."

The next two hours were possibly the worst of Hermione's life; it was so difficult to have two hours to think of nothing but Ace, and even more difficult having him in the same room as her, breathing in the same air as her. Every so often she peaked a glance at him, and he was always one step ahead, gazing at her first. She sighed and rested her head in her hands.

"Okay, you may leave." Snape addressed the class once the two hours were up. Everyone looked extremely tired and anxious to escape the dark and dingy room. Hermione, Malfoy and Ace were the only three remaining as everyone else filed out. "Malfoy, McGonagall, up here." Snape ordered, pointing at the desks beside Hermione. Malfoy took a seat to Hermione's right and Ace to her left.

"Now, you three all know why you're here. You have made me despise students more than any of the other students here put together today," Snape said. "With the exception of Potter." He added as an afterthought. "Further talking will result in an even longer detention."

With that, Snape sat himself behind his desk and watched the three of them menacingly, just waiting for one to say the slightest word. After all, Snape was under the impression that both Malfoy and Ace were infatuated with Hermione; surely some sort of argument would break out, giving Snape more incentive to publicly humiliate Hermione. However, after half an hours time, there was not even the slightest sound. Bored, Snape said, "I have someplace to be. I will return in five minutes; any talking and I _will _know about it." With that, Snape left the dungeon.

Three seconds after Snape left, Ace leaned over and whispered in Hermione's ear, "Come to my room tomorrow night at eight o' clock."

Startled, Hermione nodded before she had a chance to think about it.

"I believe I said no talking," A voice echoed through the room. They heard a light trickling sound in the background. Hermione stifled a laugh as she realized that Snape had gone off to the toilets. "Mr McGonagall, you can join me here for another hour tomorrow night at eight o' clock, _sharp._"

"Okay then, make that nine." Ace whispered to Hermione.

Malfoy looked over at Hermione, who felt his eyes on the back of her head and turned to face him. His facial expression clearly said, _Don't go._ However, Malfoy had completely dropped Hermione as a friend earlier that day, and had he not done so then Hermione may have just took his request into consideration. But he did, so she decided to see Ace the following night, totally unaware of what she would be getting herself into.

The second that the detention finished, Ace zoomed out of the room as though he were a piece of metal being attracted to a magnet somewhere far beyond the room.

Hermione and Malfoy filed out of the room; Hermione did not look at Snape, because she thought that if she did she just might curse him.

The moment they were out of earshot of anyone, Malfoy rounded on Hermione. "Granger, you're not going to see that idiot tomorrow night."

"Excuse me!" Hermione exclaimed.

"I said you're not going. End of story." Malfoy ordered.

"You're not the boss of me!" Hermione cried shrilly. "If I'd fancy going to see Ace then that is my decision!"

"Fine, but I expect you're going to be in for a lot more than you're bargaining for." Malfoy warned.

"Oh, shut up, Malfoy. You don't know me." Hermione said.

"I know you well enough to know that you're not ready to date someone like him!" Malfoy shot back. "I was young and innocent once too, you know-"

Hermione snorted. "Right! You were always a foul little child who always got what he wanted, and now that your father is dead you're even worse than you were before!"

Immediately she knew she'd gone too far.

After a few moments of silent, Malfoy said, "You're right, Granger. I do always get what I want."

In a fleeting moment, Malfoy stopped right in his tracks, grabbed Hermione's arm and spun her around so that she was facing him. He swiftly leaned in for a soft, gentle kiss, catching Hermione completely off-guard.

_SMACK!_

For the second time that year, Hermione slapped Malfoy around the face. She then ran as fast as she could towards the common room, cried the password for admission and ran straight to her bedroom, slamming the door and laying down on her bed, and meanwhile never looking back.


	11. Draco Malfoy: A Man of Many Personalitie

Draco Malfoy: A Man of Many Personalities

The next evening arrived in a heartbeat, and Hermione was more nervous then she'd ever been in her life. Why did Ace want to see her? After all, he was the one who broke things off with her. He should have no business with her anymore. But apparently he did, and Hermione's curiosity got the better of her as she left her common room at nine o' clock sharp. Ten minutes later, she was staring at the large, oak door of Ace's bedroom. She drew a sharp breath before knocking, noticing that she was slightly trembling at the same time.

Ace answered the door wearing a tight black t-shirt and tight dark jeans. He smiled lightly as he beckoned for her to come in. Hesitantly, Hermione finally walked into the room and sat down on the now too-familiar sofa. She watched Ace as he made his way to the couch and sat down next to her. Then he turned his whole body so that he was fully facing her, giving her his full attention. Hermione did the same.

"Hello." Hermione finally said.

"Hey." Ace replied.

"Ace, I don't know what this is all about, but apparently you're with Parvati now so-"

"I'm not with Parvati!" Ace cried. "She just came over one night and…I dunno… things just happened. But we're not, like, dating or anything!"

"Whatever, you're still sleeping with her-" Hermione began.

"Once!" Ace corrected. "One time! And the last time, too. Sorry, but I'm nineteen, okay? That's what I need to do. It's something that I crave on."

"So that's why you "dumped" me so suddenly? If that's what you can even call it. You would fool around with me but you wouldn't ask me to be your girlfriend or anything like that. You tell me that you think we should just be friends, but that's what we were, Ace! And then you flaunt you nasty little sex affair with Parvati in the Three Broomsticks-"

"What about you kissing that Potter! What the hell was that!" Ace demanded. "Obviously you only did it to spite me."

"Actually, it was to spite another friend, but whatever you want to make up in your little head is your business. I don't really care anymore." Hermione said.

"That's not the point." Ace said. "The point is that you kissed him."

"There's nothing going on between us!" Hermione cried. "You can sleep with my roommate but I can't kiss my best friend! Come on, what the hell is that!"

"There is a difference." Ace pointed out. "I'm the guy. I have to do that, that's what I'm saying."

"And us girls don't have our "cravings" at all?" Hermione shot back.

"Not you." Ace snorted.

"What's that supposed to mean!"

"Just that you're square."

"I am sick of people calling me square!" Hermione shouted. "Just because I'm not ready to have sex yet does not mean that I'm square!"

"In my book it does." Ace replied, simply.

"Well then you need to get an updated book." Hermione said in an icy tone.

"Hermione, I did not ask you here tonight to argue." Ace said exasperatedly.

"Then why did you?" Hermione challenged, coldly.

"Because I needed to talk to you." Ace replied.

"About?" Hermione shot back.

"Just… talk to you." Ace ended, rather lamely. "I kind of miss you."

Hermione was taken aback. "You… you miss me?"

"Yes. Since I saw you kiss Potter. It kind of triggered something in me and made me miss you so much." Ace explained.

"I miss you too." Hermione whispered.

Ace grinned his infamous smile. "That's why I asked you here tonight. I want things to work between us again. And now I'm asking you out. Hermione, will you be my girlfriend?"

Hermione looked completely stunned. She was lost for words; this was her dream, the one thing she'd been dreaming about the last few weeks since Ace "broke up" with her. She sat there for what felt like hours, thinking over the situation.

"Uh, Hermione?" Ace asked. "What do you think?"

"No." Hermione whispered.

"What!" Ace cried.

"No." she repeated.

"But…but _why_?" Ace stuttered. He was possibly even more shocked than Hermione was at the question and at her own answer. And honestly, she had no idea why she had just rejected the boy of her dreams. All of the possible reasons that popped up in her head all seemed petty and stupid.

"Because…because… well, school is really stressful, and…er… I…"

"You _what_?" Ace challenged angrily.

"I like somebody else!" Hermione blurted out.

"WHAT?" Ace hollered.

"I like someone else. I have to go now, Ace. I'm sorry. Bye." She stood up abruptly and left his common room before he managed to say another word regarding the situation.

_Why did I say that? _Hermione asked herself. _I don't like anyone else. I don't think I do, anyway. I would know if I did! But then why did I say it? As an excuse? I know I like Ace, but why would I not go out with him? This was my dream!_

"Silver Meadow!" Hermione cried to the mermaids basking in the warm, radiant sun. They had changed the password recently, and the blond mermaid looked as though she was hoping that Hermione had forgotten it. Since she hadn't, that mermaid's face fell into a look of disappointed as she swung the portrait open.

Of course, there was Malfoy lounging around on the gorgeous, violet sofa. He appeared to be waiting for her.

"And?" he asked, expectantly.

"What?" Hermione shot back.

"What did the twit want?" Malfoy asked as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Screw you Malfoy, I don't feel like putting up with your bullshit right now, okay?" Hermione sighed, exasperated.

"He didn't try to get you in bed again, did he?" Malfoy asked, sounding concerned.

"What's it to you? I don't get you, Draco. I mean, _Malfoy_. First you hate me, then you want to be friends with me, then you _don't _want to be friends with me, then you kiss me! What the hell is wrong with you?" Hermione demanded.

"I'm a very complicated person." Malfoy answered simply.

"Yes, I got that." Hermione replied. "Why did you kiss me, Malfoy?"

"What's wrong? Don't think that anyone would want to kiss you?" Malfoy asked. "Believe it or not, you're not as terrifyingly ugly as you may think you are."

"I don't think I'm ugly." Hermione defended. "I'm quite happy with how I look, thank you."

"Whatever." Malfoy said.

"Whatever? That's all you have to say? Come on, Malfoy! Did you kiss me to try and make me forget about Ace?" Hermione stipulated.

"No." Malfoy answered.

"Did you kiss me because you felt sorry for me?" she insisted.

"No."

"Then why?" Hermione demanded. "Why? I just don't understand-"

Malfoy stood up from where he was sitting. He carefully walked over to Hermione and stood right in front of her. She looked up into his mysterious, gray eyes and realized how significantly taller he was then her. Malfoy placed both of his hands on Hermione's face, holding her and keeping their gaze locked. He then lowered his face and kissed her gently. This time, Hermione did not pull away. From the moment their lips met, it was as though a spark had been ignited. Malfoy did not pry his way into Hermione's mouth; she opened hers willingly and Malfoy let his tongue slide in and gently caress hers. Their kiss was slow and passionate, just like in the movies.

The kiss continued as they moved in unison over to the couch. Hermione fell onto it and Malfoy fell on top of her. His tongue began to thrash around wildly with hers doing the exact same. Malfoy held Hermione's hips as she twirled his hair around her finger, and Hermione noticed that his hands were not even attempting to find their way up to her chest.

Malfoy pulled away and gazed into Hermione's chocolate brown eyes.

"Why did you stop?" Hermione whispered.

"What, you want me to go further?" Malfoy asked.

"No. It's just that I'd doubt that you would stop with any other girl." Hermione explained.

"Just shut up." Malfoy said. He kissed her gently, then conjured up a warm, golden blanket. They cuddled together, with Malfoy's arm around Hermione's shoulder and Hermione leaning on Malfoy's chest. She loved rising with his every breath, and before she knew it her eyes were slowly closing before drifting into a great night's sleep.

"Coming to my party, Hermione?" Lavender asked Hermione the next morning.

Hermione was startled. Her thoughts had been back in the previous night. It felt so wonderful, so _safe _to be in Malfoy's arms. When she awoke this morning, she was lying on the couch and Malfoy was nowhere to be seen. Now, at the breakfast table, she was wondering why he had disappeared so suddenly and where he had disappeared to.

"Huh?" Hermione asked.

"Are you coming to our party! It's Saturday night in the Room of Requirement." Lavender explained.

"The Room of Requirement?" Hermione asked, still startled at being pulled away from her thoughts.

"Yup. Are you coming?" Lavender persisted.

"Um, yeah. Sure. I'll be there." Hermione nodded.

"Excellent!" Parvati cried, with Lavender nodding in agreement. "We'll see you there."

Hermione watched Lavender and Parvati go down the table to the next set of people, pushing them to come to their party as well. She had a feeling that the two girls' would be inviting the entire school to their little fiesta. Perhaps Hermione would ask Malfoy to go with her…

Suddenly, Hermione spotted Malfoy. It was as though the moment he entered the Great Hall, she sensed his presence. However, he was not alone. He was accompanied by none other than Pansy Parkinson, Hogwarts whore. _What the hell? _Hermione asked herself. She gave Malfoy a quizzical look, but he appeared to have either not seen her or be ignoring her. Pansy was clutching onto his arm as though her life depended on it, and she seemed to cackle at every little thing Malfoy would say.

Hermione had seen enough. She stood up and strode over to where Malfoy had just taken a seat at the Slytherin table.

"Hello, Draco." Hermione smiled. "I was wondering if-"

"What the hell is this little piece of mudblood trash doing at _my _table?" Pansy shrieked.

Millicent Bullstrode stood up and cracked her knuckles, threateningly.

Blaise Zabini cracked up laughing. "Maybe the little mudblood wants to become a Slytherin!" he stood up and gazed into her eyes. "You have the most beautiful eyes…" he said, seriously. Then he cracked up laughing. Pansy and Millicent howled in agreement.

"Get the hell out of here, stupid Gryffindor bitch." Blaise said this time genuinely serious. "I don't want to get muggle rabies."

The whole Slytherin table shrieked in laughter. Hermione looked shocked and appalled. She glanced over at Malfoy for support. Surely he would stand up for her. Defend her. But he just sat there, sinking lower and lower into his chair.

"Fine." Hermione said. "Fine! I'm gone!" She turned hastily and ran back to the Gryffindor table, plopping herself down and dropping her head in her crossed arms on the table. She continuously lifted her head and endlessly banged it on the table.

"How could you think he's changed?" she asked herself. "He's never changed. He will never be able to change. What made me think any different?"

"Talking to yourself?" A voice asked.

Hermione lifted her head to see Harry peering down at her.

"Hello, Harry." Hermione said, immediately.

"Hey." Harry replied. "Look, I wanted to apologize for-"

"No apologies necessary." Hermione cut in. Then, instantaneously she asked, "Would you like to go to Parvati and Lavender's party with me?"

"What!" Harry cried, flustered. "You want me to… I mean, of course I do!"

"Excellent. Pick me up at eight." Hermione ordered.

"Will do. See you then." Harry said, still stunned at Hermione's change of heart.

_What am I doing?_ Hermione asked herself. _I'm taking advantage of Harry, that's what I'm doing. But why? To get back at Ace? To get back at Malfoy? To hurt Harry for being such a jerk lately? _She had no idea. All she knew was that there was going to be quite a few angry people at the party on Saturday night, and it would all Hermione's fault.


	12. The Party of the Year

The Party of the Year

Hermione managed to avoid Malfoy for the rest of the week. She knew he was looking for her, knew that he wanted to talk to her, but she didn't care. What kind of a guy would act so sweet and amazing to a girl one day, then completely disregard the fact that a bunch of people are making fun of her the next? Malfoy, that's who. Hermione didn't need him. She had a date with Harry to look forward to. However, looking forward to it was as far away from the truth as possible. The truth is, she's dreading it. She doesn't know what Harry expects; she had only meant it to be a friendly date. Not a 'will-you-be-my-girlfriend?' date.

Anyways, Saturday night approached rather quickly and Hermione was stuck by herself in her room trying to figure out what to wear. She decided to leaf through a clothing store magazine from Hogsmeade and have the dress of her choice flown in by owl, seeing as she didn't own any appropriate dresses. So, she skimmed through the pages of the magazine, each passing page causing her hopes to go further and further down. None of the dresses seemed appropriate. Nothing that she'd want to wear, anyway-

_Wait a sec! _Hermione thought to herself. She pointed her finger at a dress that stood out more then any of the others had. It was a navy blue dress, very short and tying up around the neck. Very simple, yet very gorgeous. She was sure to be noticed wearing this. So, she cut out the picture, grabbed sixty-two sickles and placed it all in the pouch that was tied around the foot of the owl she received for becoming Head Girl. She watched the owl take off, and not even twenty minutes later it returned with a large package. Hermione eagerly tore the box apart and pulled out the same, navy blue dress that she had been gazing longingly at only minutes before. _Beautiful. _She thought. She quickly undressed and slipped into the dress. This time, Hermione allowed her hair to be loose and drape around her shoulders. After applying a bit of makeup and some last minute touch-ups, Hermione felt ready to face the world. She left her bedroom and made her way out to the common room.

_She looks beautiful. _Malfoy thought as Hermione emerged into the common room. He was standing there in dress pants and a nice shirt, holding a dozen red roses and smiling broadly.

"Beautiful." Malfoy voiced aloud. "Just beautiful. Now let's go."

"Excuse me?" Hermione asked.

"Let's go. To the party. You know… dancing, hanging out, that kind of a thing?" Malfoy asked as though Hermione did not know what a party was.

"Duh!" Hermione said, angrily. "What I mean to say is that I'm going with someone else."

"Someone else?" Malfoy asked, skeptically.

"Yeah. Is it that hard to believe?" Hermione challenged.

"Who?" Malfoy demanded.

"Harry." Hermione whispered.

"Sorry, who?" Malfoy repeated.

"Harry." Hermione said louder.

"Potter? Ha! Oh god that's hilarious!" Malfoy clutched his ribs and grabbed the couch to stop himself from falling over from laughing. "Potter!"

"I'm not kidding, Malfoy." Hermione said after his laughing died down.

"But Potter hates you." Malfoy stated. "You tease him then drop him. Now you go out with him? There is seriously something wrong with you, Granger."

"Oh, Draco!" cried one of the mermaids.

"What?" Malfoy demanded.

"There's someone here for Miss Granger. A Mr Harry Potter. A very attractive Harry Potter." The mermaid giggled.

"I suppose I should be going." Hermione said. "I'll…er… see you there. Bye."

Before Malfoy could say anything clever to save the moment, Hermione climbed out of the portrait hole. Harry gazed at her. "You look beautiful." He complimented.

"You don't look to bad yourself." Hermione teased.

Harry smiled and extended an arm. "Shall we?"

"Yup." Hermione said, accepting his arm. They walked together down the several flights of steps in silence until they reached the Room of Requirement. There was no noise coming from it, causing Hermione to assume that the party had a silencing charm placed around it, therefore teachers were not aware that this party was going on.

They entered and were greeted by Lavender and Parvati, giggling and thanking Harry and Hermione for coming. The Room of Requirement could not have looked any different from the DA Room. The party room was vast; its enormity shocked Hermione. It was bigger than the Great Hall! There was a band on stage in the far left corner, and in the far right corner there was a cluster of multi colored couches (for just hanging out). On the right side of the room there was also a bar. _Odd. There can't be alcohol here._

"Parvati, you guys aren't serving alcohol, are you?" Hermione screamed over the loud music.

"Of course!" Parvati screamed back. "It's a party!"

"Parvati, I'm Head Girl-" Hermione began to explain.

"Oh, Hermione!" Lavender whined. "Live a little! Have some fun! Don't ruin this for everyone!"

"Come on Hermione, it's only one night. Nothing's going to happen." Harry said right in her ear so she could understand him perfectly.

"Well, okay!" Hermione shouted.

Harry led Hermione into the crowd of people. They began to dance to the music, Harry twirling Hermione around the dance floor. They swayed to the rhythm, but there was absolutely no chemistry in Hermione's opinion. Halfway through the second song, Harry leaned in and pecked Hermione on the lips. Hermione smiled (though it was very forced), but her smile grew broader as she reminisced about her kiss with Draco…

Harry grinned. He had made Hermione smile and look all dreamy. They continued to dance, and after about three songs Ginny butt in.

"Hey, Hermione. Do you mind if I dance with Harry?" she asked, politely.

"No, of course not!" Hermione cried, thankful to have a reason to be excused.

Harry looked disappointed, but took Ginny and began to dance with her. Hermione made her way through the crowd, but did not manage to get out before she bumped into Malfoy.

"Look, Malfoy-" Hermione began.

"Shhh." Malfoy shushed, placing a finger on Hermione's lips. He motioned for her to listen just as a slow song came on. He held out his hand as an invitation and Hermione hesitantly took it. Malfoy's arms slipped around Hermione's waist and her hands wrapped themselves around his neck. They then began to sway to the music. Once again, Hermione felt incredibly safe in the arms of Malfoy. _Why does he make me feel this way? _She asked herself angrily. But then she told herself to shut up. She just wanted to savor the moment.

Once the song ended, they broke apart.

"Want a drink?" Malfoy offered.

"Um, sure." Hermione said. So, they shoved their way out of the crowd of dancing Hogwarts students to the bar.

"Two beers, please." Malfoy told the bartender.

Hermione shot him a piercing look.

Malfoy sighed. "Okay, never mind. Two sodas." he turned to Hermione. "Happy?"

"Very." Hermione smiled.

The bartender magicked two glasses of soda for Hermione and Malfoy. However, before they could even say a word to each other, Pansy appeared. She did not even take notice of Hermione.

"Drakie, let's dance!" She whined.

"No, not now-" Malfoy said.

"Come on, Drakie! I want to dance!" She tugged at his arm and pulled him out onto the dance floor. Malfoy looked desperately at Hermione, but she just laughed silently at him and gave him a look that showed no pity whatsoever.

Suddenly, Hermione had to go to the bathroom. She got up and found her way, took a quick pee and returned to the bar. She picked up her drink and sipped at it while looking around at all the dressed up Hogwarts students. She spotted Ron dancing with Hannah Abbott, Harry still dancing with Ginny, Draco dancing with Pansy… the pairs dancing were unlimited. Hermione enjoyed sitting there, watching them.

She continued to sip at her drink before a tall, muscular figure appeared in front of her. "Hey Hermione." It was Ace.

"Hello, Ace." Hermione sighed.

"How are you doing?" Ace asked.

"Good. Fine." She chugged the rest of her drink down.

"Can we go sit on the couches?" Ace asked.

"Yeah, sure." Hermione said. So, she got up and headed for the rest area. "Oh wait, I want another drink-"

"Don't worry, I'll get it." Ace offered. Hermione took a seat on a bright, yellow couch and waited for Ace to return with a drink for her. Once he did, she quickly took a sip while Ace made himself comfortable.

"The soda sure tastes funny tonight!" Hermione shouted over the music.

"Yeah, mine does too." Ace said, holding up his drink.

"Hey, Hermione!" Ron yelled as he took a seat across from her on a vibrant blue couch, accompanied by Hannah. He threw Ace a look of disgust.

"Hey!" Hermione shouted. "What's up?"

"Nothing. We're tired though, aren't we?" Ron asked Hannah. Hannah smiled and nodded as she kissed Ron. Suddenly, their kiss turned from gentle and innocent to wild and passionate.

Hermione looked away. She once again chugged down the rest of her drink, then turned to Ace and pointed at Ron and Hannah. "Someone's having fun tonight, aren't they?" She yelled.

Ace smiled and nodded. "Hold on, I'm going to get you another drink."

Hermione nodded vigorously and engrossed herself in a funny conversation with Dean Thomas while waiting for Ace. Once he returned, Hermione guzzled her drink down. She had soda after soda after soda, and eventually she grew weary of sitting down and pulled Ace out onto the dance floor.

They began dancing innocently, but soon Hermione's dancing went from innocent to coarse as she turned and began rubbing her body up and down against him. She turned around and without warning, she grabbed the back of his head with one hand and pulled him into a deep, passionate kiss. She forced her tongue into Ace's mouth and fought with his, not backing down. She jumped up into Ace's arms so that he was carrying her by her ass while she continued to have a heated make out session with him in the middle of the dance floor.

"You're so hot, Ace!" Hermione shouted into his ear.

"How hot?" Ace asked.

"Really hot!" Hermione giggled.

"Want me to show you _just _how hot I can get?" Ace asked in a seductive voice.

"Hell yeah!" Hermione cried. So, Ace grabbed her hand and the two made their way across the dance floor to the opposite side of the room where the exit door was. However, just before they managed to escape, Malfoy blocked the exit.

"Where are you going?" Malfoy asked Hermione. He shot a dark, quizzical look at Ace.

"Oh Draco, you're such a worry-wart!" Hermione laughed, poking Malfoy in the chest. "We're just going to have a little fun, don't you worry!"

"No, I don't think so." Malfoy said. "You're coming with me, Granger."

"NO!" Hermione shrieked. "Ace is going to show me how hot he can get. I don't want to miss out! You can come!"

Malfoy looked revolted. "No thank you! As Head Boy, you're coming with me and that's final."

"Fuck you, Malfie!" Hermione said. "He loves me! Look!" Hermione turned to face Ace and kissed him passionately once more.

"That's not love!" Malfoy shouted. "Now come _on!_"

"Dude, get out of the way." Ace said, finally stepping up. "Hermione wants a real man, not some punk wannabe with ugly hair. Now, we're going to have sex. I can tape it for you if you'd like, seeing as you're never going to have her-"

_SMACK!_

Half of the room stopped in mid-dance to watch Malfoy's fist collide with the side of Ace's face. Ace was down in that one shot. He was not worried about his rep at the moment; he was only worried that his face was not too badly damaged.

"Come on, Hermione." Malfoy said. He grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the Room of Requirement.

"Bye, Acey!" Hermione cried in a very loud whisper. "I'll call you!"

Once Hermione and Malfoy were out in the hallway, Hermione collapsed into Malfoy's arms.

"Brilliant." Malfoy muttered to himself. "Just brilliant."

It took all of the strength he had to haul Hermione up what felt like a thousand flights of stairs until they reached the portrait of the mermaids.

"Hello, Draco." The black haired mermaid greeted, smiling and batting her eyes at him.

"Just open up, please. Silver Meadow." Malfoy ordered.

"Okay." The black haired mermaid said sounding rather disappointed at the lack of attention she received from him.

Malfoy heaved Hermione onto the couch, then muttered a spell that conjured a cloth and a bowl of cold water. Malfoy soaked the cloth in the water, then placed it carefully across Hermione's forehead, not knowing what else to do.

About ten minutes later, Hermione came around. She was still drowsy, but felt a bit better than she did before.

"What… what happened?" Hermione asked to no one in particular.

"I think Ace might have spiked your drinks." Malfoy presumed.

Hermione laughed. "Right! That's it, Draco. Ace, the boy who likes me, spiked my drinks. Ha! That's a good one!"

"I'm serious, Granger. Have you ever even been drunk before?" Malfoy asked.

"Oh yeah, all the time. I'm a full-time alcoholic during the summer holidays." Hermione snickered, obviously joking.

"I don't see how you find this funny." Malfoy said. "Ace spiked your drinks so that he could take you away someplace private and do the deed with you."

"So?" Hermione asked, still laughing. "I could have used with a bit of fun. That party wasn't quite what I expected. Rather boring, really."

"You know what, obviously you're still drunk." Malfoy said. "So you should just go to bed and I'll talk to you in the morning."

"I don't want to go to bed!" Hermione shrieked. "I want fun! Parvati and Lavender promised me fun and I didn't get it! Stupid little gits." She then stared at Malfoy and her face lit up as though a light bulb went off in her head. "We could have fun!"

"I'm not really up for Twister, thanks-" Malfoy began.

"Not Twister!" Hermione grinned, deviously. "How was it that you put it? _Do the deed?_ Ha! That is _so _funny!" She began to cackle with laughter again.

"What?" Malfoy asked, obviously clueless.

"Let's do it!" Hermione cried. She leaped on top of Malfoy and pinned him to the couch. "Let's have sex!"


	13. The Effect of Alcohol

The Effect of Alcohol

"I'm sorry. Let's _what_?" Malfoy repeated. The shock on his face was priceless; if he was expecting Hermione to say anything, it certainly wasn't that.

Hermione giggled. "You're so stupid, Draco!" She laughed, punching him in the arm rather harder then she probably intended while still pinning him to the couch. "I _said, _let's have sex! You know, it's that little thing when two people get together and sexually-"

"I know what sex is!" Malfoy cried, interrupting Hermione's definition. "Okay, let's discuss this rationally. Get off me."

"No." Hermione's giggling became more pronounced than ever.

"Granger, get off of me." Malfoy repeated.

"You're going to have to make me!" Hermione teased, still giggling ecstatically. "Come on, Draco! I know you're in love with me and that you've wanted to do it since forever. Here's your chance!"

"Don't flatter yourself." Malfoy said, gently pushing Hermione off of him. After a small struggle, he finally managed.

"You're no fun!" Hermione cried. "You're just as boring as Harry!"

That caught Malfoy's attention. "Excuse me? Just as boring as _whom_?"

"Harry. Harry Potter. You don't know Harry? He's only the most famous person in the world." Hermione explained.

"I know who Harry Pothead is!" Malfoy snarled, defensively.

"Ha!" Hermione laughed. She clutched her ribs and continued to laugh endlessly. Tears began to pour out of her eyes. "I know you do!" She screeched. "That's the point! You see, _I _know you know who Harry is and _you _know you know who Harry is but I pretended that I didn't know you knew who Harry is and you fell for it! Ha!" She slipped to the floor and curled up into a little ball, trying (without success) to suppress her laughter.

Malfoy was at a loss for words. He had no idea what he was supposed to do. _This must be the reason why she doesn't drink, _he told himself.

"Okay Granger, you're going to go to sleep. I'm going to go to sleep. We are going to see each other in the morning and I can almost guarantee you that you're probably not going to have any recollection of what went on tonight, so if you'll-"

"Oh Malfoy, I love you!" Hermione shrieked. She picked herself up off of the floor and lunged at him, once again knocking him over onto the couch. She unsurprisingly kissed him passionately, forcing her tongue into his mouth the same way she had done to Ace only minutes before. Suddenly, without warning, Hermione took hold of the front of Malfoy's button down shirt and ripped it open, revealing a gorgeous, sexy chest that she would have died for had she not been drunk.

"Come on, Draco! Take my dress off!" Hermione pressed.

"Shit, Hermione!" Malfoy exclaimed. "We're not going to-"

"Okay, fine." Hermione said. She reached her hands to the back of her neck and began untying the dress. Once the knot came free, the straps fell, revealing her breasts to Malfoy. He looked away instantly. Hermione sighed, giggled, then grabbed his face and forced him to look at her. "Their all yours, Draco." She said, continuing to giggle. She kissed him again, but this time he kissed back. _Yay, I'm breaking him! _Hermione cried to herself.

"Hermione!"

Hermione and Malfoy both whipped their heads around in time to see Harry standing in the entrance of the portrait hole.

"How'd you get in here!" Malfoy demanded.

"I have influence!" Harry answered, as though Malfoy were completely insane for asking that question at the moment. "What the _hell _is going on here!" he cried, trying so hard to avoid making eye contact with Hermione and instead focusing all of his attention upon Malfoy. Hermione began half-dressing herself.

"Ace spiked her drinks-" Malfoy began.

"We're having fun, Harry!" Hermione interrupted, giggling. "Draco and me were going to-"

"_Destructo!_" Harry hollered while pointing his wand directly at Malfoy. A stream of yellow light burst from it and shot Malfoy in the bare chest, causing him to be thrown against the far wall and crumple to the floor, unconscious.

Hermione burst out laughing. "Oh … my… god!" She managed to say through all of the laughter. "That… was … awesome!"

"Hermione-" Harry began.

"I want to try!" Hermione cried. "Please, Harry? Can't I try? _Destructo!_"

The exact same spell that Harry performed on Malfoy materialized from Hermione's wand and aimed directly at Harry.

"_Protego!_" Harry shouted, blocking the spell.

Hermione began to whine. "Harry!" She sobbed. "You ruined my spell! Did you see how pretty it was! And you ruined it!"

Suddenly, the portrait hole swung open, revealing the second visitor of the evening. Professor McGonagall looked furious.

"I demand to know this instant what all of the noise is about!" She exclaimed. After taking a quick glance around and noticing an unconscious Malfoy and Harry and Hermione with their wands pointed at each other (not to mention Hermione with her dress put on sloppily backwards), her expression changed from fury to curiosity.

"I expect Malfoy was about to rape Hermione, Professor." Harry answered, innocently.

"What?" Professor McGonagall demanded, sharply.

"I don't know what would have happened had I not arrived." Harry continued. "And it looks as though Hermione is drunk."

"Yes, Winky has been loyal and went straight to Professor Snape once she heard of the party. Dobby tried to stop her, but all the same. I cannot believe Miss Granger would do something so brainless-"

"Oh, she wasn't drinking by choice!" Harry cried, jumping to defend Hermione. "It appears as though Ace put alcohol in Hermione's drinks."

Hermione burst out laughing. "He did, too! It was so funny! I didn't even notice! He is one hell of a kisser, though! Did you know that?"

"Enough, Miss Granger!" Professor McGonagall shouted. She looked outraged, and yet in shock at the same time. She turned her attention back to Harry. "Are you saying that my nephew put alcohol in Miss Granger's drinks without her knowledge?"

"Yes, Professor." Harry confirmed. "And from what eye-witnesses at the party have told me, Malfoy took Hermione from Ace and brought her up here. I just walked in on the two of them-"

"You walked in?" Professor McGonagall asked, skeptically. "How?"

"I begged and pleaded for the mermaids to let me in. They seem to have a soft spot for boys, and they allowed me entrance." Harry explained.

"I see." Professor McGonagall said. "I must have a talk with them, then. Please continue."

"Well, I walked in and they were both…er… not completely dressed. Now from what everyone knows of Malfoy's relationship with Hermione, they despise each other."

Hermione snorted. "Despise? Ha! That's a funny word, Harry! We hate each other! I don't despise him! At least, I don't think I do. What does despise mean again?"

Harry and Professor McGonagall ignored her. Harry continued. "That led me to the conclusion that Malfoy was taking advantage of Hermione's state of mind and trying to force himself on her."

"Very well, Mr Potter." Professor McGonagall sighed. "I will take the necessary precautions in the morning to ensure suitable punishment for both Mr Malfoy and Mr McGonagall." She focused her attention on Hermione. "Miss Granger, I advise you get some rest. There will be no punishment for you. And Mr Potter, very well done. Please come with me, I'll take you back to the Gryffindor Tower."

Harry looked longingly at Hermione, obviously not wanting to leave her. But, he did not dare argue with a teacher. Professor McGonagall performed a charm to levitate Malfoy out of the common room and to the Hospital Wing where he will get treated and revived by Madam Pomfrey.

Once left alone, Hermione felt abandoned. "Where did everyone go?" She asked the thin air. And with that she giggled herself to sleep.

The next morning arrived in a blur for Hermione. _Ouch, my head! _She cried to herself as she slowly got up from her lying down position on the couch. Everything was hazy; she could not completely see at first. Eventually, the fogginess died down a bit. However, the headache did not.

"I need some Advil." She got up, walked over to a desk, pulled out a bottle of Advil and popped a couple of pills in her mouth, completely forgetting that she was a witch and that she could make the headache vanish instantly with one simple charm.

After a long, hot shower, Hermione felt a bit better. She checked the clock on her bedside table.

"One thirty!" She cried, double-checking the time on the clock. Panicking, she grabbed all of her schoolbooks and raced for the exit. Then she halted, abruptly. "Damn it, its Sunday!" Calming down a bit, she threw her books on the nearest table and left through the portrait hole, anxiously heading for her delicious lunch in the Great Hall. On the trip downstairs, she tried to remember what happened last night, but nothing came to mind. _I went to Lavender and Parvati's party with Harry. _She told herself. _Then I sat with Ace for a bit. Then… _she let her thoughts drift off. Everything after that point was blank.

"Hermione!" A voice cried.

She snapped out of her attempts at reminiscing the previous night, only to come face-to-face with Harry, Ron and Ginny in the Great Hall.

"Oh!" She cried, startled. "Good morning, guys. Or afternoon, I suppose."

They all exchanged puzzled glances.

"What?" Hermione asked.

"Are you… okay?" Ron asked after choosing the appropriate sentence.

"I think so. Why shouldn't I be?" Hermione asked, puzzled.

"You don't remember last night?" Ginny questioned, looking worried.

"No! Thank god, I thought I was going crazy. You don't either?" Hermione asked, sounding relieved.

"_I _do." Ginny said. "It's just that-"

"Ace was sent back to Durmstrang this morning." Harry explained. "And Malfoy was suspended."

"What?" Hermione asked, baffled. "Why?"

Harry went into the story of what had happened the previous night. He told her that Ace had spiked her drinks and that Malfoy had saved her from him, only to take her upstairs and attempt to rape her himself.

"What!" Hermione cried. "Malfoy would never do that! Ace wouldn't either! I don't… I don't understand. Is this some sort of sick joke?"

"No joke." Ron said, sadly.

"This can't be happening! Ace can't be gone! And Malfoy… Malfoy wouldn't do that to me! We're friends! Well, sort of. In a way. He would never try and rape me. Period."

"Well, he did." Harry said, bluntly. "And now he's gone. No one's sure how long, but I'm sure it will be awhile."

"Wow." Hermione managed to say. It was unbelievable, but she could not remember anything, so she couldn't deny that it had happened. For all she knew, it did.

"It's okay, Hermione." Harry said, immediately moving over to her and slipping a shoulder around her arm. "Everything's okay now. The two creeps of the school are gone. Now we can have a relationship, just you and me without anyone getting in the way."

"I've…uh, got to go. I'm supposed to meet some friends in the library." Ginny said, immediately. "You're alright, Hermione?"

Hermione nodded.

"Okay. Bye, then." She scooted out of the Great Hall.

Harry lifted Hermione's chin and kissed her. "Everything's going to be alright."

_No. _Hermione told herself. _No, it won't. _


	14. Bathroom Break

Bathroom Break

Hermione spent the next few days trying to remember what happened that night after Lavender and Parvati's party. She was behind on her homework and less sociable during classes. Harry watched her like a hawk; wherever Hermione was, Harry was two inches behind her. Harry couldn't understand, though. No one could. How could Malfoy do that to her? That was the only question that ran through her mind. If he didn't do it, then he would have denied it to McGonagall and she would have taken the extra steps to ensure that he was telling the truth. But obviously he didn't deny it; otherwise, he'd still be at Hogwarts. And Ace. Ace was gone for good. It was unreal. How could one night that was impossible to remember change Hermione's life for the worst? And of course, there was Harry. He was like an insect that would not go away! _I don't like Harry in that way. _Hermione continuously told herself. But she could not bring herself to "break up" with him. She had already hurt him so much; how would it look if she just broke up with him for no reason?

The biggest factor had to be Malfoy though. He had tried to rape her, and that was the bottom line. The same guy she had been sharing a dormitory with for the past few weeks. The same guy she had befriended for a little while, even with the events of the past six years still fresh in their minds. The same guy who was prepared to take her to the party, even though she never said yes.

"Hermione? Are you okay?"

Hermione looked up to see Ginny staring down at her. Suddenly, she realized that there were silent tears sliding down her cheeks. She had been trying to catch up on her overdue homework in the library, but apparently slipped away into her own mind once more.

"Hermione?" Ginny repeated.

Hermione quickly brushed the tears out of her eyes. "I'm… I'm fine. Honest." She smiled a fake smile that did not seem to work on Ginny.

"You are not." Ginny said. "What's up?"

Hermione sighed. "It's Malfoy."

"What about him?" Ginny asked, quizzically. "He's gone now, you don't have to worry about him."

"But the thing is… the thing is that I think I actually _liked _him. Before all this happened. There were some sort of feelings there, I think."

"You _liked _him?" Ginny cried.

"Shh!" Hermione shushed, glancing around the library to make sure that no one was listening.

"Sorry." Ginny whispered. "You actually liked Malfoy? The same Malfoy who tortured you and Harry and my brother since the day you all arrived at Hogwarts?"

"One in the same." Hermione sighed. "I just don't understand why he would try to rape me. It doesn't make sense. Not at all." She tried to stifle her tears, but failed miserably as a fresh, hot batch began to stream down her face.

"Oh, Hermione!" Ginny cried. She wrapped her arms around Hermione and held her for what felt like a century. Once they released each other, Ginny said, "There's a Hogsmeade trip coming up next weekend. Do you want to go with me?"

Hermione sniffed. "I expect Harry's going to want me to go with him."

"Forget Harry." Ginny said. "He'll understand. We need girl time. So, do you want to go with me?"

Hermione smiled. "Yeah. Definitely."

The Hogsmeade weekend approached faster then expected. It was as though the days just flew by, and Hermione still could not remember what happened that night; the block that separated that night's recollection from everything else was not fading, and it was frustrating Hermione to a great extent.

"Ready to go?" Ginny asked excitedly as Hermione emerged into the Entrance Hall.

"Yup. Let's go." Hermione smiled. The two walked out of the castle and down the stone steps, following the rest of the school towards Hogsmeade.

"Hermione! Hey, Hermione! Wait up!" Harry came sprinting alongside Hermione and Ginny.

Hermione sighed. "Hello, Harry."

"Harry! We already explained to you that it was just me and Hermione." Ginny said.

"I know. But Ron ditched me. He chose to stay at school and go flying with Hannah rather then come to Hogsmeade with me. Not too much of a shame, though. Now I get to spend some time with my beautiful girlfriend." Harry slipped his hand into Hermione's and gave her a peck on the cheek. Hermione still couldn't remember when she had become Harry's girlfriend.

Once the three of them entered Hogsmeade, they went straight for the Three Broomsticks, anxiously awaiting a warm, delicious Butterbeer. When they were seated with their drinks, Harry leaned over and began whispering things into Hermione's ear, like how beautiful she looks and how she's made his life perfect. Ginny looked rather awkward.

"I think I'll go get refills." Ginny said, even though the glasses weren't even half empty.

"Don't bother!" Hermione cried, desperate to get away from Harry. "I'll get them. I have to go to the bathroom, anyway."

Harry looked disappointed, but Ginny immediately lured him into a conversation about Quidditch.

Hermione sighed as she walked towards the back of the Three Broomsticks, looking for a bathroom. _Why does Harry like me so much? When did all of this start? Maybe I said yes to being his girlfriend that night, and I just can't remember it. _Whatever happened though, it was definitely sickening Hermione. She wanted to give him a good old smack around the head and tell him to go away, but she just couldn't do it.

Without even noticing, Hermione walked into the boys' bathroom. A guy was crouched on the floor with his back to her, scrubbing dirt off of each, individual tile.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" Hermione cried. "I didn't even realize-" She immediately stopped in mid-sentence. It was just then that she noticed how blond this boy's hair was. How muscular his arms were. How he looked as though he had never cleaned anything in his life.

"Draco?" She asked, timidly.

The boy did not turn around. It was as though he didn't want to. He didn't want to face what was inevitable. But, he had no choice. So, he slowly picked himself up off of the floor, brushed the dirt off of his knees and turned to face Hermione.

"Hello, Granger." Malfoy smirked.

"I… I wasn't watching where I was… what are you doing here?" Hermione stammered.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but I've been suspended." Malfoy said, stating the obvious. "When you've been suspended you're expected to come to Hogsmeade and do some volunteer work until your suspension is over. I've been sentenced to clean the boys' washrooms while you're here, so that we wouldn't see each other. Obviously _that _didn't work out."

"Obviously." Hermione said, heading towards the door. "Look, I have to be getting back to-"

"Wait a moment." Malfoy said, stopping Hermione dead in her tracks. "We have to talk."

"I don't think we do." Hermione said, her anger suddenly replacing her fear. "All I have to do is shout for Harry and he'll come running. I don't think you want that so if you'll just-"

"What is your problem?" Malfoy asked. "Why are you so jumpy around me? I was almost sure the shock of my amazing good looks had worn off by now."

"Do you forget what happened the night of Lavender and Parvati's party as well?" Hermione challenged, sarcastically.

"As well? So I was right. I told you that you'd have no recollection the next morning, didn't I?" Malfoy asked, superiorly.

"I've gotten the gist of it!" Hermione cried. "First Ace spikes my drinks and then you come acting as Mr. Knight-In-Shining-Armor-"

"Acting?" Malfoy asked, skeptically. "Come on! If I hadn't stopped you from leaving that party with Ace then you would have regretted it in the morning, take my word for it!"

At that moment, an innocent bystander entered the bathroom. "Uh, this _is _the guys' washroom, isn't it?"

"Get out!" Hermione cried.

The guy scampered out of the bathroom like a dog with his tail between his legs.

"A bit angry, are we?" Malfoy smirked.

"Shut up, Malfoy!" Hermione shouted. "So you come along and pretend to save me, only to take me back up to our dormitory and attempt to rape me yourself! You are sick, you know that? Absolutely, positively sick-"

"So you believe the story too then?" Malfoy interrupted. He picked up a broom and began sweeping the dirt into a neat little pile.

"What story?" Hermione cried. "You did and you know you did! I don't remember anything, Harry and McGonagall obviously believe the story and you don't deny it! How dare you deny it now!"

"Well I am, so deal with it." Malfoy said, coolly.

Hermione took a deep breath. She was so confused. A bit of her wanted to believe what he's saying is true, but the rest of her found it unbelievable. "What happened that night?" She asked calmly.

"Obviously you already have your mind made up, so I'm not even going to bother trying to change it." Malfoy said while he bent over to sweep the dirt into the dustpan.

"Malfoy, you're the only one who was there for the entire thing. What happened?" Hermione persisted.

Malfoy sighed. "Fine. To make a long story short, I took you upstairs, you kept pushing to have sex with me, you undressed yourself and me and then Potter walked in on us and knocked me unconscious. That's about all I can remember."

"_I _was pushing to have sex with _you? _Preposterous! Absurd! What a load of crap! That's the best you could come up with?" Hermione laughed.

"I'm serious, Granger." Malfoy said. "I said no, but you kept pushing. Damn, you're horny when you're drunk."

"I am not!" Hermione cried, revolted. "How dare you!"

Malfoy smirked. "None of this would have happened if you didn't keep pushing yourself on me, Granger. This is all your fault. And who gets reprimanded for it? Me."

"Something's not right here." Hermione said, slowly. "If this story is true (which I highly doubt), then you shouldn't be here. If you told this story to McGonagall, then she would have found a way to clear your name."

"That's because I didn't tell the story to McGonagall." Malfoy said as he began cleaning the mirrors.

Suddenly, two unrecognizable heads appeared in the bathroom. Both were sniggering.

"What do you want?" Hermione growled, obviously angry at being interrupted once more.

"We heard there was a girl in here." One of the boys said. They looked like fourth-years. "What are you doing?"

"I'm about to make hot, passionate love to this guy right here. If you want to see then stick around." Hermione said in an angry yet serious tone.

The boys looked abashed but hesitated for a second before scurrying out of the bathroom at top speed.

"Now, where were we?" Hermione asked, frustrated with all of the distractions.

Malfoy looked impressed at Hermione's outspoken ferocity, but he did not voice his feelings.

"Oh, yes." Hermione remembered. "You didn't tell the story to McGonagall. And why didn't you, Malfoy? I would just _love _to know."

"Because." Malfoy said, lamely.

"Because…" Hermione continued for him. "Because what, Malfoy? Spit it out already."

"I didn't tell McGonagall the truth because of you." Malfoy said, quietly. He hated himself for saying it. Loathed every part of himself for feeling the way he felt.

"Because of me?" Hermione asked, skeptically.

"Yes, because of you Granger." Malfoy repeated. "I thought you needed your space, and I certainly needed my space. You don't remember what happened that night, but I do. I remember everything. You were throwing yourself at me like some desperate virgin who needed to lose her virginity by midnight. And you know what? I said no. Me. Draco Malfoy. But you kept persisting, and I gave in. I did. If Potter hadn't interrupted us, then trust me, we would have gone all the way."

"Well if this is all true then of course you gave in! It's expected of you, you being a guy and all." Hermione said.

"You don't seem to understand, Granger. I would have taken advantage of any girl at Hogwarts that night and any night, except for you. But then I almost did, and I realized that this whole you-and-me thing is wrong and it shouldn't happen. If I stayed in that dorm with you for even a few days more then my feelings would have overcame me and you're not ready for that."

"Why except for me?" Hermione asked. "What you-and-me thing? What feelings?"

"You are so stupid!" Malfoy exclaimed. "Granger, I like you, okay? I like you."

Hermione was speechless. Absolutely lost for words. _Draco Malfoy likes me. The mudblood he's enjoyed torturing over the past six years. Unbelievable._

"I…" Hermione began. But nothing came out. "I have to go."

And with that, she turned swiftly and left the boys' bathroom, leaving a confused and lost Malfoy behind with it.


	15. A LongAwaited Battle

A Long-Awaited Battle

Hermione was flabbergasted and at a total loss for words. She just did not know how to deal with Malfoy's little surprise. He hated her like usual at the beginning of the year, then they became friends, then he tells her that they should just go back to hating each other, then he tells her that he actually likes her. It was all too much. But Hermione knew that she had one thing to do that was important no matter how she felt about the situation. So, she left the Three Broomsticks (without telling Harry or Ginny) and ran all the way back to Hogwarts, not stopping for anything. When she did finally stop, it was right outside of Professor McGonagall's office.

_BANG, BANG!_

Hermione pounded on the door until McGonagall answered.

"Miss Granger!" McGonagall exclaimed when she finally answered the door. "What is all the ruckus about?"

"I need to speak with you, Professor." Hermione said, panting and out of breath.

"I am currently in a meeting with Professor Dumbledore, but if it is urgent then I shall ask him to leave." McGonagall said.

Hermione peered over McGonagall's shoulder and noticed Dumbledore sitting gracefully in a chair across from McGonagall's desk. He smiled and nodded at Hermione.

"No, don't bother." Hermione said, briskly walking into the office. "He'll find out anyways." She sat herself in a seat beside Dumbledore. "Good afternoon, Professor."

"Good afternoon, Miss Granger." Dumbledore smiled.

"What is it that you want, Miss Granger?" McGonagall asked, taking a seat in the comfortable chair behind her desk.

"To tell you the truth. I finally remembered what happened the night of the party." Hermione lied.

McGonagall and Dumbledore looked slightly interested, so she continued.

"I…er… was a little bit drunk, as you both know. It wasn't my fault, I didn't know about the drinks. But I did have alcohol in my system, which caused me to act a little…er…stupid. I kept pressuring Malfoy to…to sleep with me." She said, embarrassed.

McGonagall raised her eyebrow and looked rather disappointed, but Dumbledore showed no expression. "Please continue, Miss Granger."

"Well, I kind of tore both of our clothes off even though Malfoy said no, and that's when Harry walked in on the scene. He didn't even wait for an explanation; he just cursed Malfoy. And that's… that's my story." She finished, lamely.

"So Mr Malfoy has done nothing wrong?" McGonagall asked, shaking her head. "Why wouldn't he tell me?"

Hermione's eyes widened. She wasn't expecting this question. "I'm sure he has his reasons." She covered up. "He probably likes looking like a bad boy, you know?"

"Yes, yes, very well. I will have an owl delivered to Hogsmeade asking for the return of our Head Boy. It's a good thing you came forward, Miss Granger. Professor Dumbledore and I were just suggesting names for a replacement Head Boy." McGonagall said.

"Perhaps it would be best if we did have a replacement Head Boy." Dumbledore suggested as he surveyed Hermione through his half-moon spectacles. "Only for a little while."

"But Albus!" McGonagall exclaimed. "The boy has done nothing wrong! It's not right to strip him of his title!"

"I'm sure Mr Malfoy will understand." Dumbledore said, calmly. "Only for a little while, Minerva. Please send an owl to Mr Potter with the Head Boy badge."

Hermione's face fell as her eyes widened in shock; why Harry? Of all of the boys in the school, why choose Harry for Head Boy? _I suppose because of everything he's done, _Hermione told herself, bitterly. _Damn him for being so heroic. _

"Yes, Professor Dumbledore, I'll see to it immediately." McGonagall said before promptly exiting the room.

Dumbledore continued to survey Hermione. "Is there something you'd wish to tell me, Miss Granger?" he asked kindly the minute McGonagall was out of sight.

"No." Hermione replied, quickly. "Nothing at all. Er… I'd better be going. Good bye, Professor."

Dumbledore kindly nodded and watched Hermione until she was completely out of sight as well. Once outside, she slumped against the wall and fell to the bottom, dropping her head in her hands. _Why me?_

Hermione did not return to Hogsmeade. Instead, she took refuge in her dormitory by herself, savoring the last few hours before Harry would invade in her personal space and really be around twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

At six o' clock, Hermione was almost drifting off into a peaceful sleep on the couch before two people entered her common room: Harry and Malfoy.

"Hermione!" Harry cried, rushing over to her and taking a seat on the couch. "Where have you been? Ginny and I looked all over Hogsmeade for you and we couldn't find you. We were so worried!_ I _was so worried!"

"I… I had a lot to think about." Hermione said, shooting a meaningful glance in Malfoy's direction.

"Do you want to talk to me about it?" Harry offered.

"No, she doesn't." Malfoy butt in. "Actually, I'm sure that what Granger wants at the moment is for you to move further away from her and get a breath mint. Once you've done that, then you can smother her."

Instantaneously, Harry stood up. "You have some nerve, Malfoy. I should curse you right here, right now, just like the night of the party. You went down awful fast, didn't you Malfoy?"

Malfoy glared at him. "That was a coward's shot. You want a duel, I'll give you a duel. I'll whoop your ass any day Potter, don't forget that."

"Guys!" Hermione cried. "Just chill! Malfoy, what are you doing here?"

"I have to pick up a few things." Malfoy answered, grinning deviously. "I'm back."

"What a joy." Harry muttered, sarcastically.

"What's that Potter?" Malfoy disputed.

"You know what I'd like to know?" Harry challenged, completely changing the subject. "What really did happen that night?"

"You seem to have it all figured out already, Potter." Malfoy retorted. "It must have been fun for you to come up with a load of shit that gets me suspended, wasn't it? You know that your little story wasn't the truth, and yet you tell it to the whole school to fulfill your sick pleasure. I praise you, Potter."

"That's what you get for almost taking advantage of Hermione-" Harry began.

"You fucking bastard-" Malfoy spat.

"Harry, could you please wait outside for a moment?" Hermione interrupted. "I would like a quick word with Malfoy."

Harry did not go quietly, but a few moments later he was slouching against a wall in the long corridor outside of the dormitory.

Hermione crossed her arms and looked expectantly at Malfoy. "So? What's the 411?"

"411?" Malfoy asked, quizzically.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "What's going on?"

"Well, Saint Potter's been made Head Boy." Malfoy explained. "Finally, Dumbledore's favorite boy gets what he's always wanted: more fame and glory to stuff in that thick head of his. I'm shocked there's enough room for it."

"And what about you?" Hermione asked with a slight tone of concern in her voice.

"Me? I'm going back to being the King of Slytherin." Malfoy answered, coolly. "They all miss me there, anyway. It's better then cleaning the floor of the Three Broomsticks, that's for sure."

"For how long?" Hermione inquired.

"Dunno. I suppose we'll see with time." Malfoy replied.

Hermione gave a slight nod and shifted uncomfortably.

"By the way, thanks." Malfoy said, quietly. "For telling McGonagall. I think its bullshit that you all of-a sudden regained your memory of that night, though. But all the same, thanks."

"Malfoy, I like you, too!" Hermione blurted out.

"Duh." Malfoy replied, coolly.

"What?" Hermione cried, shocked by his reaction (or lack of reaction).

"It's so obvious that you may as well have _I love Malfoy_ stamped across your forehead. I'm surprised the whole school doesn't know, that's how obvious it is."

"Aren't you full of yourself." Hermione said, mockingly.

"Too bad it's not gonna happen." Malfoy stated.

"What's not going to happen?" Hermione asked, confused.

"Us. You and me. Dating. That whole load of crap, it's not gonna happen." Malfoy explained.

"Why not?" Hermione cried, now completely confused. "You like me, I like you, it's all perfect! You've been the one comfort I've had ever since Ace-"

"See, that's the thing." Malfoy said. "Ace. That's the only reason you feel anything for me. It's called rebound, Granger. You get dropped so you go running to the next guy that you feel closest with. Sorry, but I'm not a rebound kind of guy. I don't do that. And come to think of it, I don't do dating. It's not my style."

"So what's your style?" Hermione challenged. "Sleeping with the girl and then dropping her? Real classy, Malfoy."

"Shut up Granger. You don't know a thing about me so you can take your theories and shove them up Potter's ass."

Hermione felt as though she had been slapped in the face. To her horror, her eyes began to burn as she tried with all of her might to hold back the tears that were fighting to escape.

_Shit! _Malfoy said to himself. _What the hell is wrong with me?_ "Don't… don't _cry, _Granger."

"I'm not crying!" Hermione shrieked, defensively.

All of a sudden, Harry appeared in the common room. He immediately noticed the escaped tear trickling down Hermione's cheek and turned to face Malfoy, his chest bubbling with rage.

"Malfoy, get out of here now." Harry ordered, quietly.

"Go fuck yourself, Potter." Malfoy retorted. "As you can see I'm trying to talk to Granger, so if you could just go off somewhere and die then I'd be thrilled. Thank you."

"Get out of here before I make you." Harry repeated, his anger increasing with each passing second.

"I don't have time for this-" Malfoy began.

_SMACK!_

Harry's fist collided with Malfoy's jaw as his wand lay lost within his pocket, completely forgotten. All of the anger and hatred that Malfoy felt for Harry seemed to come down to this very moment. Malfoy punched Harry in the gut, then hit him square in the face. Harry fell to the floor clutching his noise and piercing Malfoy with a look of fury. He swiftly threw out his leg, hitting Malfoy's and knocking him to the floor as well.

"Guys! Guys STOP IT!" Hermione shrieked. She felt stupid and embarrassed; it was like a damn movie. The two guys fight over the girl like she's some sort of prize or something. If she needed anything, it certainly wasn't this.

Harry leapt on top of Malfoy and began repeatedly striking him in the face, something he dreamed of doing since the first day they arrived at Hogwarts. Malfoy seized his chance while Harry was drawing back for another hit to knee him in the stomach, causing Harry to roll off of him and cower on the warm, carpeted floor in pain. Malfoy stood up, wiping the blood off of his mouth with the back of his hand. The light clearly showed that he was sporting a bloody lip and a bruised cheek, distorting his usually handsome appearance.

"Malfoy, stop!" Hermione cried.

He didn't though. Totally disregarding Hermione's plea, he bent down and grabbed a handful of Harry's robes, lifting him onto his feet. Malfoy then drew back his arm and punched Harry with all of his strength, sending him right back onto the floor with a fresh cut on his already wounded lip.

"Harry!" Hermione screamed. She ran over to Harry and knelt down next to him, instinctively grabbing his hand and rubbing his back. Suddenly, Harry swiveled around and gave Hermione a hard shove, knocking her to the floor.

"Get out of it, Hermione!" Harry shrieked.

Hermione immediately sat up, stunned at just being pushed by her so-called loving boyfriend. For the second time in the last ten minutes, she began to cry.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Malfoy spat at Harry, his anger duplicating three times its original state as he watched his archenemy physically abuse Hermione. With one blow to the head, Malfoy knocked Harry unconscious. He then rushed over to the small patch of floor next to Hermione that didn't have a spot of blood on it and impulsively wrapped her in his arms, waiting patiently until the crying ended.

"Is there something wrong with me?" Hermione sobbed, hopelessly wiping the tears from her eyes. "I'm a seventeen year old virgin who turned away the only guy I ever truly cared for before you. I play mind games with my best friend who I love like a brother, yet he just pushed me. And of course I get you suspended and stripped of your Head Boy badge! I'm just ruining lives left and right, including my own!"

"Just shut up, Granger." Malfoy smiled. He lifted himself up and then helped Hermione to her feet. Once they were both stable, he slipped his arm around Hermione's waist and led her into her bedroom, closing the door gently behind him.

"I'm not going to do it with you, Malfoy." Hermione sniffed.

"Too bad, I was looking so forward to it." Malfoy replied sarcastically as he led her over to her bed and helped her slip under the covers. He then walked around to the other side of the bed and slipped in beside Hermione, wrapping his arms around her and holding her, making her feel safe and secure. And that was how they fell asleep. Even with their argument still fresh in Malfoy's mind and Harry's abuse still fresh in hers, they drifted off to sleep, the world finally feeling right.


	16. The Plan

The Plan

Hermione's eyes fluttered open the next morning, greeted by the wonderful rays of sun that were streaming into the room through the open window. It took her a fraction of a second before she remembered who's arms were wrapped around her so safely, and the thought caused her to smile until she remembered Harry being knocked unconscious out in the common room. She sighed, wishing she could stay in Draco's arms if even for a moment longer. But the lessons awaiting them in less than an hour stood out clearly in Hermione's mind, and she could not afford to miss a class. So, she gently shifted Draco's arms and slid out of bed, not awaking him just yet. She then pulled on a robe and exited the bedroom. When she entered the common room, the unfortunate sight of Harry greeted her. He was sitting upright against the couch on the floor, clutching his head and squeezing his eyes shut as though trying to remember what happened.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. "Hermione!" he cried, catching sight of her immediately. He scrambled up off the floor and ran over to her. "Hermione, I'm _so _sorry about last night. I was angry and caught up in the moment, I didn't realize what I was doing. I didn't mean to push you, honest-"

_This is my chance, _Hermione thought to herself. "Harry, I don't think we should see each other anymore."

"No, don't say that." Harry said, sternly. "You're just angry. Don't base our entire relationship on one occurrence. It was just an accident!"

"One accident could lead to two which could lead to three and so on, Harry. I just don't think… I don't think that this should go further. You pushed me, Harry! I just want us to split up, okay?"

"No, I won't accept it!" Harry cried. He grabbed Hermione harshly by her shoulders and swiftly moved in, kissing her ruthlessly and attempting to lead her over to the couch.

Immediately, Hermione shoved him away from her. "Harry! What the hell is wrong with you? What did I _just _say? I don't want to be with you anymore, okay! I don't even know if I want to be _friends _with you anymore. You're making me sick!"

Suddenly, Malfoy appeared in the common room. He was yawning and stretching, obviously just waking up. After his prolonged yawn, he noticed Harry and Hermione brawling in the middle of the common room. Harry noticed him as well.

"So." Harry said, crossing his arms. He must have had the wrong impression. Malfoy emerging from Hermione's bedroom after a night like the previous one would probably have given anybody the wrong impression. "I see now why you're doing this. It couldn't be clearer."

"No Harry-" Hermione began, trying to correct his impression.

"You know what? Just fuck off, Hermione. Who would want to be with a little tramp like you anyway?" Harry said, angrily.

Hermione's jaw dropped out of shock. _What the hell did he just say to me?_

Malfoy yawned once more. Once he was finished, he said, "Potter, you'd better get out of here before I kick your ass again. You already look like shit, there's no need for me to make you look worse."

Harry angrily stormed out of the dormitory, most likely going back to the Gryffindor Tower where all of his things still resided and telling all of the juicy gossip to Ron.

"Well _that _was uncalled for." Hermione noted, shaking it off.

"What happened?" Malfoy asked, looking adorable as he wiped the sleep out of his eye with the back of his hand.

"I just kind of broke up with him." Hermione said, still confused. "Since we weren't even technically dating, I don't see how 'break up' is the correct terminology, but you know what I mean. Harry obviously did, too."

Malfoy strutted over to Hermione and placed both of his hands on her waist. He then leaned in and gave her a soft, gentle kiss. "Morning, Granger."

Hermione smiled. "Good morning, Draco. I thought we weren't going to 'do this'?"

Draco put on a hard look of consideration. "I changed my mind." He finally came up with. "You're just too irresistible to stay away from."

"Say the words, Draco." Hermione said, hopefully. This was how things got ruined with Ace. He had never properly asked her out.

Draco scrunched his noise up in disgust. "Come on, Granger!" He cried. "You know I don't like all of this-"

Hermione leaned in and kissed him lightly, shutting him up.

Draco sighed. "Okay, fine. Granger, will you be my girlfriend?"

Hermione's face broke into the biggest smile she'd had since they arrived at Hogwarts for their seventh year. "Yes!" She cried, throwing her arms around him and squeezing him tightly, never wanting to let go.

"You know we can't keep this quiet." Hermione finally noted. "This can't be a hush-hush relationship. For all we know, Harry's already told the entire school about what he thinks happened between us last night. How do we deal with that?"

"Who cares?" Draco answered, coolly. "If someone asks, tell them what you want. Once everyone finds out that it didn't really happen, I'll be the biggest loser in this damn school. But again, who cares?"

Hermione's smile broadened, but then another thought caused her to frown. "I don't want to live here with Harry!" She whined, suddenly remembering the new living arrangements. "And I don't want you to go!"

"Don't be stupid." Draco answered. "I don't have to go. I'll stay here with you for as long as you want. I'd rather you not be alone with that little shithead anyway."

"But Draco-"

"I know." Draco interrupted. "No sex."

Hermione grinned again. "You are so the best!"

Draco smirked. "No need to tell me. I already know. Look, I have to go get my stuff from Slytherin, okay?"

"Yeah, sure." Hermione agreed. "I have to get ready for classes anyway. See you when I see you?"

Draco smiled. "See you when I see you."

About half an hour later, Hermione emerged into the Great Hall, where she was instantly smothered by Lavender and Parvati.

"Hermione! Hermione!" They cried, racing up to her. "We overheard Harry telling Ron that you slept with Malfoy! Is it true? Is it?"

"Uh-" Hermione began.

"Hello, Granger." Draco said, materializing beside Hermione.

Lavender and Parvati gaped at Draco, then practically drooled as they awaited Hermione's answer.

"Did I sleep with Malfoy?" She repeated, looking up into Draco's dark, mysterious eyes. If she said no, she'd be telling the truth and saving herself from a possible bad image that was sure to arise. But if she said yes, she'd definitely be saving Draco from being tortured by all of the guys in Hogwarts.

She sighed, then nodded to indicate to the girls that she did in fact do the deed with Draco.

Lavender shrieked, while Parvati grabbed Hermione and squeezed her tightly, jumping up and down excitedly. "It's about time, too! Even if it was with _him._" Parvati cried, glaring at Draco.

Draco stood there, stunned by Hermione's answer. He knew that she only lied for him, to save his name, and he was more grateful than she would ever know. "I'm going to go over to the Slytherin table." He whispered in her ear. Hermione nodded, smiling and accepting the look of thanks swimming around in his eyes.

Draco swaggered over to the Slytherin table where he was greeted by Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Blaise Zabini and a swarm of other Slytherin guys itching to know what exactly happened last night.

"Way to go, dude!" Blaise cried, hitting Draco hard on the back. "You broke the virgin! Excellent!"

Draco tried to smile, but couldn't quite bring himself to doing it.

"So now that we all know she's weak, I think I'm gonna try and get her tonight-" Blaise said.

"Hell no!" Draco cried.

Blaise's face grew dark and slightly angry. "And why not, Draco?"

Draco sighed and took a deep breath. Hermione did this huge favor for him, so it was only fair that he do this for her. "Granger and I are dating."

Blaise spit out the drink that he had just sipped on. Crabbe, Goyle and all of the other guys looked stunned in disbelief. "The little mudblood is your _girlfriend_?" Blaise demanded.

"Yes." Draco answered, bravely. "As of this morning."

Blaise grabbed Draco by the arm and pulled him into the corner of the Great Hall, away from prying ears. "Please tell me you're joking, Draco."

"No joke." Draco replied, firmly.

"You don't _date!_" Blaise exclaimed. "You're the King of Slytherin! You can get any girl you want, and you finally got Granger. Congratulations to you! You can't have a relationship with a mudblood, Draco. If you must have one then have it with Pansy or someone, at least someone in Slytherin. Just not the little bitch."

"Watch it, Blaise." Draco warned, sharply. He then shut his eyes and apologized to the heavens and to Hermione for what he was about to do. "It's all a plan, my man. She's a vulnerable little girl, we all know that. Imagine how much fun it's going to be when I fuck her senseless and then just dump her for no reason."

Blaise grinned, evilly. "Brilliant, Draco. Just brilliant. And here I thought you'd gone soft. Ha! As if!"

Draco managed to fake a laugh. "I just have to act as her boyfriend for awhile, that's all."

"How long is awhile?" Blaise asked.

"Uh… I'm not sure. A few weeks maybe." Draco answered.

"Do what you want, dude." Blaise said. "Just make sure the girl falls for you hard. Fuck her twice a day if you have to. I want her to be in tears. No wait! I want her to leave Hogwarts, that's how upset she's going to be once you dump her. She's going to leave, and that rids this damn school of at least one muggle. You're genius, Draco!"

"Yeah, genius." Draco repeated, not really following. He was kicking himself inside, wondering why he would come up with such a stupid story. Why wouldn't he just tell Blaise that he has feelings for her? Why wouldn't he just say that Hermione was his choice and if Blaise doesn't like it, tough.

"I don't want anyone knowing, Blaise." Draco suddenly warned, worrying that this may travel to Hermione. He did not want her to know. _Not that there is anything to know; this fake little plan isn't even going to happen, _Draco told himself.

"Oh, top secret." Blaise said, grinning. "Alright then. My lips are sealed."

"Cool. Now I'm going to sit over with my 'girlfriend'." Draco said, emphasizing the _girlfriend _as though it were a joke. "I'll catch you later."

"Oh yeah, that you will." Blaise replied evilly, watching Draco strut over to the Gryffindor table. However, Draco stopped in mid-walk. He stood there in the middle of the Great Hall, watching Hermione. She was beautiful. She laughed along with Lavender and Parvati (while Harry sat with Ron further down the table, gazing at her with great dislike). _She must not know what I just told Blaise, _he thought to himself. _She must never know. _


	17. Naughty, Naughty Draco

Naughty, Naughty Draco

The next few days wafted by swiftly; for once, everything at Hogwarts felt right for Hermione. Her relationship with Draco was just amazing; not only did he come out to the entire school about his relationship with Hermione (which was a great risk for him), but he publicly showered her in love in front of the whole school, including the Slytherins. There was only one thing odd about the situation: the Slytherins did not seem opposed to the relationship. They were actually friendly towards her and Draco, and continuously told them how wonderful it was that a Gryffindor and a Slytherin could join together and initiate even a little bit of peace between the two houses.

"Thinking again?" A voice asked.

Hermione whipped around to see Draco standing over her. She had been studying in the library trying to catch up on some of the homework that she declined during her confused stage. Ever since their relationship started, Hermione had been getting back on track in the school area, reinstating her excellent marks and her prompt homework hand-ins.

Hermione giggled. "You make it sound like it's a bad thing."

"Well, I wouldn't call it the number one pastime of the century. It's rather boring, really. You could be doing so many better things."

"Like?" Hermione challenged, smiling.

Draco leaned in and kissed her gently. She sighed inwardly; Draco's kisses were heavenly. They were like hot Butterbeers on a freezing day. Just perfect.

"You know, I've seen you do your fair share of thinking lately." Hermione said as the kiss ended.

"Huh?" Draco asked, confused.

"Well, every time I see you with that Blaise Zabini, you've always got this serious look on your face. What's all that about?" Hermione inquired.

"Nothing." Draco replied, a little too quickly. "He's my best friend. We talk sometimes. No big deal."

"Okay." Hermione said, not totally convinced.

"Pack up all of this." Draco ordered, indicating the heap of books on the table. "Let's go back to the dormitory. The quietness of this damn place is freaking me out."

Hermione laughed. "Oh yes, because it mustn't be _too _quiet. What a tragedy that is."

"Exactly." Draco stated. "So let's go."

"Alright." Hermione giggled, stuffing all of the books into her bag. She slung her backpack over her shoulder and slipped her hand into Draco's. On the way out, there was a gang of Slytherins hanging around a small table, talking in hushed voices and stopping the moment Draco and Hermione passed them.

"Hello Draco. Hello Hermione." A Slytherin sixth-year grinned, maliciously.

"Um, hello." Hermione replied, smiling oddly and continuing out the door with Draco. Draco shot the boy one last look of confusion before turning the corner out of sight.

_Oh, shit! _Draco thought, smacking himself in the forehead. Finally, comprehension had dawned on him. He had incessantly wondered why it was that the Slytherins were so supportive of his relationship with a muggleborn. But of course! Blaise must have said something. That was the only thing that made sense. _Damn him!_

"Uh, Draco?" Hermione asked. He had just stopped dead in his tracks and pounded himself on his head. "Are you okay?"

Draco snapped out of his realization. "Oh, yeah." He said, recovering. "Fine. Definitely. I just…er… remembered something I had to do. Can I catch up with you in the dormitory later?"

"Sure." Hermione replied, rather disappointed.

"See you when I see you?" Draco said in a sweet, apologetic voice.

"See you when I see you." Hermione smiled, receiving one last kiss before Draco scampered off down the corridor in the opposite direction. He jogged nonstop down numerous flights of stairs to the dungeons until he came to a quick halt outside of the Slytherin dormitories.

"Unicorn Blood." He said to the portrait, panting and trying to catch a breath from jogging all of those flights of stairs. One of the perks of being a Head Boy and Head Girl is that you know the passwords to each and every dormitory, only for emergencies. To Draco's relief, the portrait swung open. He was afraid they might have changed the password since he was stripped of his Head Boy title.

He climbed through the portrait hole until he emerged in a dark, luxurious common room flooded in green and silver. Slytherins were lounging around on armchairs and couches and on the hearthrug in front of the blazing fire. He immediately spotted Blaise Zabini reclining in a comfortable-looking silver lounger. It was not too difficult to spot him; besides Draco, Blaise had the best, most distinguishable hair in the school. Draco strode over to him, angrily.

Blaise looked up and noticed Draco, standing over him with crossed arms and an irritated expression on his face. "Yo, Malfoy. What's up?"

"Who did you tell?" Draco demanded, totally disregarding Blaise's question. "Everyone?"

"Nah." Blaise answered, unconcerned. He whipped his thumb towards Crabbe and Goyle, who were sitting stupidly by the window attempting to play a game of Wizards Chess but instead breaking the pieces out of frustration. "Just those two. Pansy overhead and… well, you know her. It's only fitting that the Slytherins all know, anyway. Now they know that you haven't gone soft, mate. It's a good thing. Everyone's willing to play a part, too."

"What the hell do you mean?" Draco asked, furious.

"Well, this is how it's going to go. You're going to break up with the little bitch in the middle of the Great Hall on November the eleventh. Everyone, and I mean _everyone _is going to see and hear. Haven't you wondered why they're all being nice to her? It makes it ten times worse when you think you've just gotten friends, but actually they've been in on it the whole time. Just brilliant. I can just envision it now. You breaking the little mudbloods heart. Slytherins booing and shouting nasty names at her. Maybe I'll get them to throw food at her. Ha! That'll be hilarious!" Blaise began laughing at the thought.

Draco tried so hard to contain his anger. "Why don't I just do it in our common room? Save the girl _some _of her dignity. We shouldn't scar her for life."

"And why not?" Blaise asked, darkly. "Her kind has made us wizards look bad. Her kind has brought filth upon our name. She deserves to be scarred for life and you know it, Draco. They are why the Dark Lord is gone now. They're why your father is gone now. One day, we'll have worse revenge then this childish, fun little plan that you and I are brewing, but until then at least we can fuck around with one of them. Stop being so worried. It's gonna be awesome, I swear."

Draco did not know what to say. Blaise was crazy. He was hell-bent on making muggleborns pay for the final death of Lord Voldemort and all of his Death Eaters. Perhaps Blaise had wanted to become a Death Eater himself; well, it's definitely not going to happen now. Why couldn't he just get over it?

"Draco!" A shrill voice cried.

Draco sighed. He braced himself before turning around and coming face-to-face with Pansy Parkinson. "Hey, Pansy."

She leaped into his arms and smashed her lips into his own, sliding her tongue into his mouth and down his throat. Draco instantly pulled away, trying not to vomit all over her.

"Something wrong?" She asked angelically with wide, puppy dog eyes.

"It's just such a… er… _surprise_ to see you." Draco stammered.

"I've missed you, Drakie!" Pansy shrieked. "I can't stand seeing you with such a dirty, filthy bitch. It makes me sick!"

_Ha! _Draco thought. **_That_**_ makes her sick. _

"But I know you have good intentions, so that's all that really matters." Pansy said sweetly. "I just can't wait until it's all over and that little whore is out of our lives for good. And you and I can finally be together!" She squeezed him tightly and as he allowed her to hug him, a look of terror spread across his face. _Forever? With Pansy? _The thought was both sickening and terrifying at the same time.

"I wish the best of luck to both of you." Blaise laughed, banging Draco on the back. "Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to, er, go to _sleep._" He laughed, then nodded to Emma Dobbs across the room. She grinned excitedly and politely excused herself from the group of Slytherins she was with before escaping to what looked like the boys dormitories. Blaise grinned at Draco, then followed Emma up the stairs and slammed the door behind them.

"That is a brilliant idea." Pansy purred. She took Draco's hand and made to pull him towards the boys' dormitories, but he would not budge.

"Sorry babe, but I've got things to do. Maybe some other time, okay?" Draco bargained, looking for _any r_eason to get out of what Pansy had in store for him.

"Ooh, a rein-check?" Pansy asked, excitedly. She lowered her voice. "That just makes it all the more special when the time actually comes. Good bye, Draco." She pulled him into a steamy kiss and pinched his butt before sauntering off and joining Crabbe and Goyle in their failed game of Wizards Chess.

"Rein-check my ass." Draco muttered under his breath as he climbed through the portrait hole and emerged in the Slytherin corridor. He continued walking, seething with anger. Now the so-called _plan _was out of the bag. More than two people knew about it, and that's exactly what Draco _didn't _want. Word could spread. But the plan wasn't happening, anyway. _I won't do that to her. I won't. _Draco told himself. _But why? She's just a mudblood. I'm supposed to hate her! Why do I feel these feelings? _

Before he knew it, he was facing the portrait of the mermaids.

"Hello, Draco." The redheaded mermaid greeted, batting her eyes at him and 'accidentally' dropping one of the straps of her seashell bra.

"Hey. Frosted Waters." Draco sighed, telling her the password.

The redheaded mermaid looked disappointed at Draco's lack of interest in her. She swung the portrait open, revealing the portrait hole for Draco to climb in to. When he appeared on the other side, the sight that greeted him was Hermione sitting in one armchair in front of the fireplace with her books spread out in front of her and Harry on a couch on the opposite side of the room. He kept shooting her menacing, livid looks that she was obviously trying her hardest to ignore. Draco shot a hateful look at Harry before intentionally striding across the room, leaning in and giving Hermione a soft, sweet kiss. He slid his tongue into her mouth with her acceptance and it began playing around with hers. Hermione giggled and Draco smirked inside, proud at making her happy and pissing Harry off.

"You guys are sick." Harry said, getting up.

"Somebody's a little jealous." Draco teased, not rising to Harry's comment. "Just because I got the girl and you didn't, there's no need to be rude. Didn't anyone ever teach you any manners?"

"Fuck you, Malfoy." Harry spat.

"Hey, hey! No need for such foul language! I wouldn't want to kick your ass again. How embarrassing would that be for you?" Draco laughed.

"Draco," Hermione said, quietly. She did not need another fight occurring between the two of them over her.

"What?" Draco asked. "I'm just stating the truth."

"Whatever. I'm going to bed." Harry said. However, before he had a chance to get up, a tall, powerful figure appeared out of the portrait hole.

"Hello, Professor Dumbledore." Hermione greeted, breathless. She was not expecting the Headmaster to visit; she hadn't even tidied up!

"Good evening, Miss Granger." Dumbledore nodded. "Mr Potter. And what are you doing here, Mr Malfoy."

"I miss my position too much to leave." Draco joked.

Dumbledore chuckled, appreciatively. "Excellent. Then I can assume that you want it back?"

"What?" Malfoy asked, stunned.

Dumbledore turned to Harry. "Harry, I am grateful for your stepping in and taking the temporary position of Head Boy, but I am sad to inform you that your services are no longer needed. I thank you for taking the job and you can feel free to move out tonight or tomorrow." Harry was furious, but he did not show it too much for the simple fact that the Headmaster was present. Dumbledore turned back to Draco. "Mr Malfoy, could you please take up residence back in your Head Boy dormitory? We need you." He smiled at Draco, who smiled back and accepted happily. He had not been expecting his Head Boy position back so soon, but he was not complaining.

"Good night to you all." Dumbledore smiled, leaving back through the portrait hole.

"Yes!" Hermione cried, hugging Draco tightly.

"Congratulations. You've officially ruined my life." Harry groused to Draco before leaving for his Head Boy bedroom.

"Anytime!" Draco called after him. "I want your ass out of my room by midnight! Hurry along, Cinderella!"

Harry ran the rest of the way to the Head Boy suite, slamming the door behind him.


	18. The Haven that is Belle Strait

The Haven that is Belle Strait

November eleventh slowly crept nearer, and as each day passed Draco grew more and more nervous about that days events. He wasn't even sure what he would do. Perhaps the best thing to do would be to tell Hermione everything and ask if she would just go along with it. But she wouldn't. Draco knew her too well. But then maybe he should just do the plan and explain everything to her afterwards. No, that's even worse. She would hate him for life. That left one option: not going through with the plan. The consequences were brutal; he would lose the respect of the entire Slytherin house, along with losing his best friends. But as the days passed, Draco felt more and more that it would be worth it. Hermione is worth whatever torture and suffering he would have to endure after his final decision. But he still could not understand why he felt that way. She's only a muggleborn!

Anyway, the evening before November eleventh, Hermione was studying in her common room. Draco was serving a detention for Hagrid (for disrupting his second year lesson), so Hermione was left on her own to study for a test that was coming up in her Arithmancy class.

Suddenly, a tall figure loomed in the shadows of the entrance. Hermione lifted her head to see who the culprit was.

"Good evening, Miss Granger." Professor McGonagall said, smiling. Hermione's heart skipped a beat. What was McGonagall doing in her common room? And why was she smiling?

"Good evening, Professor." Hermione said, standing up. "Is there something you'd like?"

Professor McGonagall's smile broadened as she surveyed Hermione surrounded by books and notes, just as she had always been. "Yes, there is actually. I wished to speak with you about something extremely important."

"Yes?" Hermione asked, nervously.

"Well, as you're aware you have been slacking off for a fair part of this term." McGonagall informed. "But you seem to be catching up and returning to your usual above average standards, and that is exactly what I love to see."

Hermione smiled, relieved that this was a nice visit and yet still apprehensive as it seemed that McGonagall's speech was not quite finished.

"Well, Belle Strait has heard about your successfulness and wonderful grades." McGonagall continued with increasing anticipation. "Have you ever heard of Belle Strait, Miss Granger?"

"No." Hermione answered, confused.

"Well, that's not surprising. Belle Strait is not a school that one would normally read about in a book. It is very private; few have ever heard of it. It is a school much like what a muggle would call a university or college. It is not mandatory for wizards and witches to attend; Hogwarts seventh year is the furthest most need to accomplish a full education. But there are few who are honored greatly by being asked to attend Belle Strait. You learn more than Hogwarts will teach you, and with that knowledge it is almost impossible _not _to obtain whichever career you wish to pursue after Hogwarts. Cornelius Fudge and Professor Dumbledore both attended Belle Strait. The school accepts students at the minimum age of eighteen."

Hermione was speechless. This sounded like a haven! "If the minimum age is eighteen, then how can I-"

"Like I said, they've seen your work." McGonagall answered her unfinished question. "They recognize brilliance when they see it. You are way above average, Miss Granger. They are willing to accept a student under the age of eighteen, and you have enough credit at Hogwarts to be able to skip the rest of your seventh year and go straight to Belle Strait. There is a more evolved form of NEWTs at the school. They call it E-NEWTs. It takes place after the two years at the school are completed."

_Total dream. _Hermione thought to herself, hardly believing it. After a few moments of shocked silence, she asked, "And where is this school?"

"Belle Strait is in France." McGonagall answered, her enthusiasm dropping a tad.

"France!" Hermione exclaimed. The first thing that ran through her mind was Draco. She couldn't leave him. She just couldn't.

"Is that a problem?" McGonagall asked.

"I… I can't move to France!" Hermione cried. "I can't leave my friends and my family and-"

"Miss Granger, this is the chance of a lifetime!" McGonagall interrupted. "There have only been twelve people at Hogwarts to be accepted into Belle Strait since Hogwarts was created! You are honestly inquiring passing up this chance of a lifetime because of friends and family?"

"I…" Hermione began. This was all too much. This _was _the chance of a lifetime. It sounded like a dream. Just perfect. But Draco…

"I'll have to think about it." Hermione answered, confused and at a loss for words.

"Very well." McGonagall answered solemnly. Obviously this had not gone the way she had expected. "I shall expect your answer no later then a week from today. Belle Strait cannot wait forever. Good night."

"Good night." Hermione replied, dazed.

The shock of there being a school as high-rated as Belle Strait and Hermione not knowing about it bemused her enough, but the fact that the school was actually asking Hermione to become an underage student there was just remarkably incredible. But Hermione could not go. She refused to leave Draco, bottom line. Perhaps Belle Strait would keep the invitation open for her until she finishes her seventh year, and then Draco and her could possibly move to Paris together, if he would accept.

Hermione was exhausted by all of the information and knowledge slowly filling her head like rain in an empty bucket. Only one thing was for sure: she had to talk to Draco.

The next morning, Hermione awoke to an empty bed. Draco must have slipped out earlier, before she awoke. She stuffed her face in her pillow; telling Draco about this news was a bit harder than she anticipated it would be. She attempted to tell him the previous night when he returned from his detention, but she did not have chance. He was tired and wanted to go straight to bed, and that wasn't exactly the type of mood she wanted him to be in when she revealed the amazing news. Hermione knew that he would tell her to go to Belle Strait straight away and pretty much tell her the exact same things that McGonagall told her and that she was telling herself repeatedly in her mind.

Today, November eleventh, marks the day of Hagrid's birthday. For the special event, Dumbledore asked the house-elves in the kitchens to prepare a scrumptious feast in recognition of Hagrid's big day; so, the students were all looking forward to an amazing feast that evening. Hermione felt this would be the opportune time to tell Draco about Belle Strait; why, she was not sure. But, her gut told her to do it that evening, so that evening she would do it.

"Ouch!" Hermione cried. Startled, she sat upright in bed looking for the culprit of the sharp pain in her leg. Curling up at the end of the bed was Crookshanks; he must have just leapt up. "Okay, okay, okay, I'm up!" She said, exasperatedly. "Happy?" Crookshanks purred affectionately as though answering Hermione's question. She could not help but smile as she lifted herself out of bed and quickly got dressed, anxious to find Draco. However, she did not have far to look.

"Morning, beautiful." Draco greeted Hermione as she entered the common room. He was already fully dressed, lounging around on the sofa and apparently waiting for Hermione to get up. She did not know it, but he had gone to visit Blaise earlier that morning, hoping to be able to persuade him to change his mind. No luck came of it, though; Blaise was still hell-bent on destroying Hermione's life that evening.

"Good morning." Hermione smiled, walking over to him and pecking him on the lips. "Excited about the feast?"

"Am I excited about celebrating some big oaf's birthday?" Draco asked. "Hell no."

"Draco." Hermione warned, sternly. "Hagrid is a wonderful person. You just never got the chance to get to know him."

"Granger, he almost killed me with one of his little pets in third year, remember? I don't fancy being friends with an attempted murder, thank you very much." Draco answered.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Okay fine, whatever. The least you could do is pretend to celebrate with the rest of us. Can you do that?"

Draco felt something fluttering around in his stomach. Every time he thought about what would happen that evening, something would flutter. He was nervous; this was deadline. This would be it. And he still had absolutely no idea what he wanted to do about the situation. If he wanted to tell her, then this would be the time to do it…

"Yeah, I can. Uh, Granger-" Draco began.

"Hermione!" A set of voices rang in unison from outside the portrait hole. "Hermione, are you in there?"

Hermione gave Draco a quizzical look before giving the mermaids permission to allow the guests inside. Parvati and Lavender scampered in, gazing avidly at their surroundings.

"Damn, you guys have it good!" Lavender exclaimed in awe.

"Yeah, like what the hell?" Parvati agreed.

"Good morning to you, too." Hermione laughed.

"You're coming on a walk with us." Parvati ordered, rushing over to Hermione and linking arms with her. "We need to talk about the feast. What are you wearing! Girl bonding time, you know? So if you'll excuse us, Draco…"

Parvati led Hermione outside, Hermione with Parvati on one arm and Lavender on the other. The three girls strolled around the Hogwarts grounds chatting about anything and everything; all in all, Hermione was having a surprisingly excellent afternoon.

"Hello, Hermione!" Pansy cried from across the grounds.

Bewildered, Hermione waved a quick hello before carrying on with Parvati and Lavender. Pansy's saying hello was once again odd, but the Slytherins all seemed to be paying much more attention to her that day; they were waving, saying hello, patting her on the back and asking her how her day was going. It was all just odd; there was no other word for it.

Pansy and Lavender decided they needed to use the washroom through midday, and of course Hermione was needed to accompany them.

"It's not proper for a girl to go to the lavatory by herself!" Parvati educated.

"Yeah," Lavender agreed. "We need each other. You never know what's hiding in those bathrooms."

They broke out in giggles. As they approached the bathroom door, a muscular, dark silhouette emerged from the shadows. It was none other than Blaise Zabini.

"Hello, Granger." He said in a cruel, menacing voice.

Parvati and Lavender began giggling once more. They obviously found Blaise attractive; Hermione found him creepy and daunting.

"Hello, Blaise." Hermione replied, a chill creeping down her back.

"You girls go on." Blaise said, indicating the bathroom to Parvati and Lavender. "I just need a quick word with Granger, here."

Still giggling, Parvati and Lavender pushed their way into the lavatory.

"Look, Blaise-" Hermione began, racking her brain for an excuse to slip away.

"Shut up, Granger." Blaise interrupted. "Look, you're all right for a mudblood, which is why I felt the need to approach you."

"Approach me about what?" Hermione asked, confused.

"Well, it's come to my attention that your dear boyfriend Draco was caught making out with Pansy yesterday while he apparently told you that he was in a detention." Blaise informed, trying to contain the menacing smile fighting to come out.

Hermione's jaw dropped. "What?" she asked, disbelievingly.

"You heard me. Usually, I wouldn't tell you. Draco's my best mate. But like I said, you're all right. You don't deserve that." Blaise said, laughing inside.

Hermione hesitated, astounded at what she was hearing. "What… what are you talking about? That can't be true. It's not. You've been wrongly informed, Mr Zabini." Hermione finally said, growing angry that Blaise would make up such silly accusations.

"Whatever. Talk to him if you want." Blaise offered, indicating the corridor leading to her dormitory.

"Fine, I will." Hermione said, turning to leave.

Blaise grabbed her arm. Hermione glared at him. "Let go of me, Blaise."

Blaise loosened his hold slightly, but did not completely release her. "Talk to him about it at the feast. He's not around right now; I think he might have snuck into Hogsmeade with a friend. Could be Pansy. He'll be back in time for the feast, though. Talk to him then."

Little did Hermione know that Blaise planned the whole thing; he dared Draco to draw very crude graffiti on the wall of the Astronomy Tower that afternoon. That would take a few hours, and when Blaise 'accidentally' lets it spill to Professor Snape about what Draco is doing, that will be another two hours (at least) detention for Draco. Snape, not liking Hagrid much, would not care if Draco were late for the feast. And that is exactly how Blaise wanted it.

All of a sudden, Parvati and Lavender emerged from the toilets. The moment they caught sight of Blaise, they started giggling once more. Blaise automatically released Hermione's arm from his grip and turned to leave, but not before shooting Hermione a meaningful, malevolent glance. "Later, Granger."

Hermione nodded to be polite, suddenly feeling sick. It couldn't be true. Draco wouldn't cheat on her. Who would she believe? Her sweet boyfriend or the new creepy Slytherin king? Simple. But Draco does have a past reputation…

"Let's go find something to wear to the feast!" Parvati suggested, excitedly.

"Yeah!" Lavender agreed, once again linking arms with Hermione. The three of them took off down the corridor back to the dormitory, Hermione still deep in thought about her confused, crazy relationship and apprehensive about the confrontation awaiting her that evening.


	19. The Feast

The Feast

Hermione spent the rest of the afternoon completely ignoring Blaise's advise; she searched the school high and low for Draco, but could not find him anywhere. She bit her nails apprehensively. Maybe Draco _was _with Pansy. The thought of actually going to Hogsmeade entered her mind, but it quickly vanished as she realized how desperate she would look going all the way to Hogsmeade to try and catch her boyfriend in the act.

Anyway, that evening Hermione entered the Great Hall in a gorgeous, light blue satin dress. She scanned the sea of students, anxiously looking for Draco. When she did not spot the flicker of blond hair, she grew disappointed. He was supposed to be here at the feast with her, so where was he?

"Hermione!" Lavender cried from the Gryffindor table. "Over here, Hermione!"

Hermione strode across the Great Hall to go and sit with the Gryffindor seventh-year girls; she did not even see Pansy slip unnoticed out of the room.

The Great Hall was full of laughter and chatter, everyone excited and starving and fervently awaiting the food to appear before them. Except for Hermione, that is. She always kept one eye on the doors of the entrance, waiting for Draco to emerge. This greatly irritated Parvati, who was not used to people not giving her their full attention while she was speaking.

Finally at six o' clock on the dot, Dumbledore stood up and got everyone's attention by tapping his class with a spoon. "Good evening, students. Before we begin this wonderful feast, I would like to wish a very happy-"

Suddenly the doors of the Great Hall slammed open with a loud bang. Draco swaggered into the room with Pansy Parkinson right behind him and Snape bringing up the rear. It looked as though Draco and Pansy had been fooling around and Snape had caught them in the act. Of course, that wasn't what happened. Draco was just returning from his detention with Snape and Pansy had snuck out only to come back in with Draco and make it look as though they had been together. All part of the plan, of course.

Snape made his way up towards the staff table while Pansy tugged at Draco's robes, trying to get him to go and sit down at the Slytherin table. Draco refused; instead, he scanned the room looking for Hermione. However, He got a bit of a shock when he saw Hermione charging towards him, looking furious.

"We need to talk." Hermione whispered in a deadly, irate voice.

"Now?" Draco asked. He glanced over Hermione's shoulder and saw Blaise grinning evilly while giving him the thumbs-up sign.

The room was abnormally quiet. Dumbledore had still not continued with his speech; he looked as though he was waiting patiently for Draco, Hermione and Pansy to take a seat.

"Go away, mudblood. No one wants to even look at you, let alone talk to you." Pansy smirked.

"Excuse me?" Hermione asked, looking greatly insulted. This was odd; Pansy had just been nice to her earlier this afternoon. What brought on the change?

"You heard me." Pansy said, running her finger down Draco's large, muscular arm. "Go away."

Draco pulled away. "Holy shit, Pansy! Give it up already!"

"Were you with _her _all afternoon?" Hermione challenged, throwing Pansy a dirty look and completely disregarding the fact that the whole school was watching. Blaise was having a silent fit over at the Slytherin table.

"No!" Draco cried, revolted. "I was-"

"Or were you only with her yesterday during your little make-out session?" Hermione spat, angrily.

"Granger-" Draco began, trying to get a word in. However, by this time Blaise had gotten up and swaggered over to where the fight had broken out. Surprisingly, none of the teachers seemed to be stopping it. Perhaps they thought it was best for the students to get this off their chests…

"Go on, Draco." Blaise pushed, his wicked smile still in tact.

"Blaise, I-" Draco began.

"You're chicken shit, Draco!" Blaise exclaimed. "Obviously you don't have the balls. Are you scared the little mudblood is going to curse you or something?"

"I just have to talk to you, Draco!" Hermione exclaimed. "I'm not going to curse you!"

"I think you're mistaken, Hermione." Blaise said in a grandmotherly tone. "He's not scared you're going to curse him because of that. He's scared that you're going to curse him because of what he's about to tell you."

"I'm not scared!" Draco exclaimed, racking his brain for something, _anything _to get him out of this mess. "Granger, let's go somewhere else-" Draco made to grab her hand, but Hermione pulled away.

"If you have something to tell me, just say it." Hermione said, bluntly. Tears were fighting to come out, but she refused to let them. Crying would only make the situation ten times worse.

Draco was silent. He did not know what to do. With Blaise on one side of him, Pansy on the other and Hermione standing right in front of him, his head felt like it was slowly reaching the point of explosion.

"Okay fine, I'll tell her." Blaise said, irritably.

"Blaise, don't-" Draco warned.

"Granger, Draco hates you. In his eyes and the rest of ours, you're a worm. A mudblood. A little bitch." Blaise began.

"Now that is quite enough!" Professor McGonagall cried from up at the staff table. "Students, kindly take your seats-"

"You're just plain disgusting." Blaise ploughed on, disregarding McGonagall's orders. "Who would _actually _want you? Yeah, I'm sure you were great in the sac according to Draco-"

Crabbe and Goyle choked in their glasses. When they came up for air, they were laughing stupidly and thoroughly enjoying the show. Pansy looked indignant as she thought of Draco and Hermione sleeping together (not that they actually did), and Blaise was holding back his laughter until the end. That last bit was Blaise's own ingenious thinking.

"But you're still a revolting, nasty mudblood. Did you honestly think that Draco liked you for _you_?" Blaise asked.

The entire Slytherin table burst out in appreciative laughter and Pansy screeched her high-pitched cackle. Hermione, however, remained silent. Out of all of the events that occurred throughout the year, all of the events that she felt speechless and stunned and at a total loss for words, this one outdid them all. This just couldn't be true! Draco had feelings for her. He wouldn't do that to her! She wasn't even aware of the entire school gawking at her with their mouths dropped open, nor of the teachers, also looking shocked that a Hogwarts student could say such things.

"Do you… do you have a point?" Hermione stammered, growing red in the face.

"Of course I do, babe. Draco here is dropping you. You're finished. It was all a plot, anyway. He fucks you, plays with your head, then dumps you. Sends you packing. You're gone, sugar." Blaise said, grinning evilly. "Bye bye."

Hermione looked at Draco. Her eyes were red as she still fought with herself not to let a single tear escape, but each passing second it grew harder and harder. She hadn't even had sex with him. Was that his goal this whole time? "Tell me this isn't true." Hermione said quietly, looking directly at him. "Tell me."

Draco looked at his feet. This was the moment of truth. Go along with the plan or get disowned by all of the Slytherins. His choice.

He closed his eyes for a brief moment and then opened them, seeing Hermione clearly for the first time. She was gorgeous. Radiant. Like a supermodel. Even when she was angry, she glowed like an angel.

"Can't we just go talk in another room?" Draco asked, quietly.

Finally, a tear tricked down Hermione's face. She looked into the eyes of her boyfriend and felt used and betrayed. He really did make out with Pansy. He really did go off with her today. And worst of all, he really didn't feel anything for her. Finally, Hermione noticed the entire Great Hall gazing avidly at her. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment but her heart ached with pain. She just couldn't handle it. Before she knew it, she was running straight past Draco and out the enormous doors of the Great Hall. Slytherins began retrieving water balloons that they had obviously hidden under the table for this very moment; they chucked the water balloons at Hermione, most of them hitting her and soaking her from head to toe. She did not stop running, though. The Slytherins all burst out in laughter.

"That is three hundred points from Slytherin!" McGonagall cried, outraged. "Never have I seen such behavior at an educational institute! Never! A weeks worth of detentions for all of the Slytherins, as well! And a months worth of detention for you, Zabini! Now, everyone take your seats this instant! You're lucky none of you are expelled!"

"You really are chicken shit." Blaise spat at Draco. "What, did you _actually _develop_ feelings _for the mudblood? Come on! She is a _fucking bitch_-"

_BAM!_

Draco punched Blaise around the face with so much force that he thought he might have broken Blaise's nose. When Blaise looked at him, his upper lip was bleeding and blood was trickling from his nose. Malfoy said nothing. He had just hit his best friend. He hit him! No time for worrying now, though. Draco had to find Hermione at all costs. He needed to talk to her. Turning, he left the Great Hall.

"Mr Malfoy!" McGonagall shouted, outraged. "Mr Malfoy, get back here!"

"Let him go, Minerva." Dumbledore said calmly but still looking alerted with a look of distress in his eyes. "Please fetch Madam Pomfrey for Mr Zabini. Now. We will deal with Mr Malfoy later."

So, following Dumbledore's instructions, McGonagall rushed out of the Hall to fetch Madam Pomfrey as Dumbledore calmed the school down from all of the excitement that had just gone on. Meanwhile, Draco was darting through the corridors of Hogwarts and dashing up several flights of stairs until he reached the portrait of the mermaids. For once, they were not happy to see him.

"How could you do such a thing?" The blond mermaid asked, disgusted.

"All of the portraits are disappointed in you." The redheaded mermaid informed. "Our Head Boy turning out to be a complete jerk."

"Frosted Waters!" Draco cried, too rushed to care about what the mermaids had to say.

"You should leave her alone!" The black haired mermaid warned. "You've hurt her enough for one night! Just give her a break!"

Completely ignoring the mermaid's advice, Draco scurried through the portrait hole, ran through the common room and came to a quick halt outside of Hermione's bedroom door.

_BANG! _

"Granger, open up!" Draco demanded, pounding desperately on the door with his fist. "Granger! You can't run forever! We need to talk! Now!"

Silence.

"Just open the damn door!" Draco yelled, beating harder on the door. He was not used to not getting what he wanted; Hermione ignoring his pleas only angered him. Perhaps she wasn't even in the room… but no, she was. Draco could hear the light sobbing of a heartbroken girl on the other side of the door. The sound of her crying softened Draco; he stopped pounding on the door and stopped yelling.

"Just… just open up, Granger. Please?" He asked, desperately.

No answer.

"Fine!" Draco cried, frustrated. "When you're ready to grow up and deal with this in a mature, adult way, then you let me know! I'll be on the couch!"

Draco angrily marched over to the couch and plopped himself on it, trying with difficulty not to scream his lungs out because of the frustration. Why wouldn't she just talk to him? Why?

Draco felt that at this rate, he would never be able to fall asleep. It didn't matter, though; he wanted to wait up all night and all day if he had to, just until Hermione would finally emerge from her bedroom. However, it was much harder then it sounded. An hour went by… then another… then another. Eventually it was ten o' clock and Draco had not moved from the spot that he was lying in. Hermione would not budge, either; she stayed locked up in her room, hiding from the world around her. Soon, Draco's eyelids began to feel heavy. The colors around him grew fuzzy as his eyes went out of focus, and soon enough he fell asleep on the violet couch, thinking only of Hermione.

An hour and a half later, Hermione was sitting cross-legged on her bed, wide-awake. She kept glancing at the mini alarm clock on her night side table. 10:30, 10:48, 11:02, 11:14, then finally 11:30. She had not heard anything from Draco for over four hours. Her tears had finally ended about an hour ago; she figured she must have run out of them. Not only had she been completely humiliated in front of the whole school, but she had been betrayed by the one person in the world who she believed she could trust. The thought just made Hermione feel sick to her stomach. How could he?

Taking a deep breath, Hermione slowly got up and tiptoed across the room. She pressed her ear to the door. No sound. Closing her eyes and collecting her composure, she turned the doorknob and opened the door. She quietly walked down the deserted corridor and peered around the corner to the common room. There was Draco, asleep on the couch. _Why is he bothering? _Hermione asked herself. _Obviously he wants it to be over, so why try and talk to me? Well, obviously he never really wanted it to begin in the first place. _It hurt so much inside; Draco told his friends that the only reason he dated her was for a few good nights of sex. _But they never even did it! He just wanted to look cool. It's the only reasonable answer. _Same old Draco. Hermione was stupid to believe that he actually changed.

She slowly and quietly crept back to her room. In the corner stood a large suitcase, freshly packed. She muttered a spell to make the luggage levitate, then left her bedroom once more with the suitcase floating slowly behind her. She crept as silently as possible through the common room, then exited out of the portrait hole.

Luckily, Hermione managed to steal her way through the school undetected; Filch and Mrs Norris must have either been a few floors up or in their office. She walked at a steady pace, her eyes still puffy-eyed from crying and her hands shaking from rage and agony. Finally, she stopped outside of a familiar office. The office that she had approached only weeks before trying to save Draco's butt. Memories were so painful.

Hermione tapped gently on the door three times. Soon enough, McGonagall appeared wearing a nightgown and carrying a candle; observing the paperwork spread out over her desk, Hermione assumed that she must have been working late into the night.

"Good evening, Professor McGonagall." Hermione croaked. Her voice was still crackled from the crying.

"Miss Granger!" McGonagall exclaimed, ushering Hermione and her suitcase inside. "How are-"

"I'm fine." Hermione answered bluntly. "I know it's past curfew, but I had to see you. I've decided to accept Belle Strait's invitation. I wish to leave tomorrow."


	20. A Crazy, Twisted Dream

A Crazy, Twisted Dream

"Tomorrow?" McGonagall asked, skeptically. "Miss Granger, tomorrow's rather short notice-"

"I don't have to go straight to the school tomorrow." Hermione explained. "I don't mind staying in a hotel in France until Belle Strait is ready for me. I wish to leave Hogwarts the moment the sun comes up."

"And how do you plan on getting there?" McGonagall asked. "It is much too far to Apparate to for someone who just received their license. I suppose you could travel by the Floo Network, but they're extremely busy in the mornings what with people traveling to work-"

"Miss Granger can use one of Hogwarts Thestrals to fly to France."

Hermione spun around to see Dumbledore enter the office. He must have heard the commotion, or perhaps he was just taking a midnight stroll.

"Thestrals are brilliant magical creatures." Dumbledore explained. "I myself use them for long, tiring journeys."

"Thank you, Professor." Hermione said, gratefully.

"How will she pay for accommodations and the necessities that she would need to live on her own until Belle Strait is ready to accept her?" McGonagall challenged.

"The same way my Headmaster did for me." Dumbledore smiled. "Miss Granger, it's all taken care of. Don't you worry about a thing."

"Where is Belle Strait exactly, Professor Dumbledore?" Hermione asked, curiously.

"It is on the outskirts of Paris." Dumbledore explained. "Very secluded, very isolated, but you're not to worry. You will have a driver from Belle Strait pick you up. I've already spoken with the Headmistress. They are ready to fully accept you into the school on the first of December. Until then you may explore Paris, seeing as it will be your new home."

"What about my parents-" Hermione began.

"You are of legal age, Miss Granger." Dumbledore said. "It is your decision and your decision only. This is completely up to you."

Hermione sighed. "I'll have to send them an owl, I suppose. Well, what about Hogwarts? Do I need to tie up any loose ends before I leave? Shall I wait until you've found a suitable Head Girl to replace me with?"

Dumbledore chuckled. "You sound just like I did when I was ready to leave; anxious and excited at the same time. You have absolutely nothing to worry about, Hermione. Er, Professor McGonagall, would you mind if I had a moment alone to speak with Miss Granger?"

"Of course not." McGonagall replied huffily. She did not want Hermione to leave so early and be left alone in the big city of Paris for three weeks, but obviously Dumbledore believed it to be fine so who was she to argue?

Once McGonagall disappeared, Dumbledore turned to completely face Hermione. "Miss Granger, I want you to be sure that you are ready to leave tomorrow at the crack of dawn."

"Oh but I am-"

"Perhaps you'd like to speak with a classmate or two before just taking off. You are not leaving for a week, you are leaving for a few years." Dumbledore informed.

"Well, I can always come back and visit." Hermione answered. "I'm going to have to come and see my parents, anyway."

"Yes, but it is not the same. I am only suggesting that if you need to speak with someone important, now is the time to do it." Dumbledore said, surveying Hermione through his half-moon spectacles.

Hermione sighed. He was talking about Draco. "There is no one I'd wish to speak with. I am just anxious to leave and get ready to start a whole new life. But I was wondering if you could possibly do me a favor, Professor."

"Yes?" Dumbledore smiled.

"Maybe you could just inform the school of where I've gone at breakfast tomorrow. Just so no one thinks I've run away or anything silly like that." Hermione requested.

Dumbledore smiled sadly. She was not going to speak with Draco. Even though Dumbledore felt that it was best that she does, she was still not going to do it. "Of course, Miss Granger. Now, you get some sleep." Dumbledore ordered, indicating a large, comfy looking couch in the corner of the room. He cast a spell that made pillows and blankets emerge from the tip of his wand and spread themselves daintily over the couch. "You have a big day tomorrow."

The next morning, Draco woke up to several rays of golden light beaming through the open windows. He stuffed his face into a pillow, blocking out the happiness of the sun, wishing it would just go away. However, when it didn't Draco realized that he was facing reality. Sighing, he got up and walked across the common room in the direction of Hermione's bedroom. Surprisingly when he came face-to-face with it, the door was swung wide open. Hermione's bed was already made; it didn't even look as though she had slept in it. _Odd, _Draco thought. _Where is she? _

After slipping into a short, cold shower, Draco emerged from it feeling refreshed and invigorated. He quickly dressed himself before racing down to the Great Hall. Hermione _must _be there. Where else would she be? However, disappointingly, Hermione was nowhere to be spotted in the Great Hall. Draco did spot someone, though; Blaise Zabini sat at the Slytherin table surrounded by Pansy Parkinson and Emma Dobbs, both of whom were showering him in attention. Draco and Blaise's gaze met; Blaise's eyes (as far away as they were) were swimming in a pool of fury and loathing aiming directly at Draco. His expression clearly said _you will pay. _Draco sighed. How did he get himself into this mess?

Well, Hermione clearly was not in the Great Hall, so Draco turned to leave, prepared to search the entire school if he had to. However, before he had a chance to, Dumbledore's voice boomed throughout the room.

"Good morning, Hogwarts students." Dumbledore smiled. "I am aware that I do not usually give a speech during breakfast, but I must inform you all of something very important. Your Head Girl is no longer a student at Hogwarts School."

They entire room gasped and the Great Hall exploded into whispers. Slytherins were grinning evilly while Gryffindors were chatting avidly about where she could have gone. Draco, however, stood frozen in his place near the doors of the Great Hall. _What did Dumbledore just say?_

"Quiet down, please." Dumbledore requested, waiting for the attention of each and every student to return before continuing. "Hermione Granger has been accepted into a fine, exquisite, extremely high-standard school in France."

"WHAT?" Draco exploded. Everyone turned to look at him. Draco's eyes locked with Dumbledore's, demanding an answer.

"Yes, it is true. The school has accepted her, and she will be the thirteenth student in Hogwarts history to attend. She would have liked to say goodbye to you all, but unfortunately she has left early this morning-"

Draco did not wait to hear the rest. He burst out of the Great Hall and ran as fast as his legs could take him, through the corridors and passages and stairways until he pushed his way out of the main Hogwarts doors and onto the grounds. He glanced around in every direction as though expecting to see Hermione standing out there waiting for him, but she was nowhere in sight. She was actually gone.

"SHIT!" Draco screamed, kicking the grass as hard as he could. "FUCKING SHIT!"

Feeling helpless, Draco took a seat on the stone steps leading up to the castle. He dropped his head in his hands, feeling more frustrated then he'd ever felt before. How could he have fallen asleep? If he didn't fall asleep, then he would have caught her! But why oh _why _does he care so much?

"Good morning, Mr Malfoy."

Draco looked up to see Albus Dumbledore towering over him. Dumbledore took a seat next to Draco on the stone steps and gazed out at the Hogwarts grounds as though reminiscing about something that had happened in his past.

"You seem quite distressed at the news I just revealed." Dumbledore mentioned, still surveying the grounds.

Draco looked over at Dumbledore with mounting dislike. Dumbledore had always been the know-it-all, annoying, favoring-Potter-and-Gryffindor Headmaster. He probably hated Draco inside, but as the Headmaster he could not speak his mind.

"I don't care." Draco muttered irritably, wishing Dumbledore would leave.

"Oh, but you do, Mr Malfoy. I can see it in your eyes. I can hear it in your tone. If you're angry or upset, feel free to express yourself. I am not here to judge." Dumbledore said.

"Why don't you just go and soothe Potter?" Draco challenged, angrily. "I'm sure he's feeling the same way I am."

"I am not with Harry, nor do I wish to be with him right now. At the moment, I am speaking with you, Draco." Dumbledore said, calmly. "And if there is anything you'd wish to speak with me about, I am always available to lend an open ear."

Draco was just about to tell Dumbledore to shut up, but another thought entered his mind. "Where has she gone?" Draco asked. "_Professor?_" He added as an afterthought.

"The school is in Paris, France." Dumbledore replied. "Well, on the outskirts of Paris, really. But they are not quite ready to accept her, so she'll just be retaining residence in a hotel in Paris until December the first when she'll be able to attend the school and live in one of the dormitories."

"Why can't I go to this school?" Draco challenged.

"It is for the best of the best." Dumbledore replied. "I am not saying that you're not smart, Mr Malfoy. Far from it. But Miss Granger receives grades so high that Hogwarts is at an effortless level for her."

"I want to go anyways!" Draco cried, complaining like a two-year old. "Does it want money? I'm willing to pay thousands, _millions _of galleons if necessary!"

"I'm sorry, Mr Malfoy." Dumbledore comforted. "But that is not possible."

"Then I'm going to Paris on my own." Draco decided, getting up and ready to leave.

"I understand your decision," Dumbledore said, standing up as well. "But I ask that you hold off until the Christmas holidays. Can you do that?"

Draco looked up into Dumbledore's pale blue eyes. He hated this man. This man who stood here pretending to care about Draco as though he were his father; hell, Dumbledore probably felt sorry for Draco because he lost Lucius last year. How dare Dumbledore even _ask _Draco to hold off on something as important as this? But in those blue eyes also stood something that Draco could not quite make out; was it trust? Sighing, Draco loosened his ready-to-leave stance. "Yes, Professor. I'll wait until the Christmas holidays."

_Just a bit slower! _Hermione cried in her head. Her eyes were squeezed tightly shut as she grasped the Thestral around its neck as tightly as possible. It was so swift and rapid straight through the entire journey. After about two minutes of watching the cars and buildings below her streak by in a blur, she felt sick and needed to shut her eyes. And for the entire eight-hour journey, they had not been opened once (well, except for the occasional peek here and there). She had only traveled by Thestral once, and she did not remember it flying as fast as this one did. Perhaps it was just the change in Thestral, or maybe Dumbledore had ordered it to fly speedier; either way, she was surprised she had not thrown up the moment she stepped off of the Thestral in a large landing in the heart of a vast forest. Glancing around, she suddenly felt worried. Why would the Thestral bring her to a forest? How was she supposed to find her way out?

"Excuse me, miss?" A voice called from behind her.

Hermione turned around. Standing behind her was a boy who must have been eighteen, nineteen tops. He was carrying a cardboard sign with Granger scrawled across it in permanent marker, and standing behind him was an ugly, battered looking green car.

"You'd be Hermione Granger, then?" The boy asked.

"Yes." Hermione answered, apprehensively.

"My name's Bart Sanders and I'll be your driver this afternoon." Bart introduced, indicating the awful green car behind him.

"Do you attend Belle Strait?" Hermione asked, excitedly.

"That I do." Bart answered, puffing his chest out proudly. "I'm on good terms with the Headmistress. She's made it my job to come out and get you. Your Headmaster ordered the Thestral to take you here so that no muggles would see it."

"Ah, I see." Hermione nodded. Bart opened the back door for her like a gentleman and helped her inside. Her jaw almost dropped as she slid in. The back seat was huge! It was just like a limousine; you could have fit at least six people in the back alone. There was a mini bar on the right side and a fairly big muggle television on the other. "Awesome!" Hermione cried. "Is this your car?"

"Nope." Bart said. "It's Belle Strait's. When the car is driven outside of the school it is a necessity to disguise it as an ugly car so that muggles don't try to break in."

"Brilliant." Hermione smiled.

"So you come from Hogwarts, eh?" Bart asked. "I'm from Beauxbatons. Got my acceptance letter only last year. Headmistress told me they didn't send you a letter, though. Because of your age, of course. Worked it all out through one of your teachers. McDougall, is it?"

"McGonagall." Hermione corrected. She leaned the side of her head against the tinted glass window as Bart started the engine and began to drive away out of the clearing. When she had her eyes open, she only thought about Draco. But when she closed them, she could actually see him standing there, smiling.

"You must have been excited when McGonagall told you, eh?" Bart asked, trying to make conversation.

"Hm." Hermione answered, nodding slightly. She closed her eyes, allowing Draco's image to flood her thoughts.

"I had the highest IQ in Beauxbatons." Bart bragged, suddenly standing behind her wearing an expensive tux with a tie designed with never-ending numbers.

"That's nice." Hermione replied, trying to apply her makeup without messing it up. This was the most important day of her life. Everything had to be perfect.

"My mother always told me I was gifted, but I never quite believed it until my letter-" Bart continued.

"Crabbe! Goyle!" Hermione cried. Crabbe and Goyle appeared in the large, lilac tent that stood outdoors on the Hogwarts grounds. "Remove him, please! I'm trying to get ready!"

Crabbe took Bart by one arm and Goyle by his other, dragging him out of the tent while he continued to jabber away about his accomplishments and surprises throughout life.

Finally, she was ready. Hermione stood up and looked at herself one, final time in the mirror. She looked radiant, wearing an elegant white wedding dress that curved into the shape of a bell at her hips all the way down past her ankles.

She slowly walked out of the tent into a crowd of people. Half of the people sat in chairs on the left side with the other half on the right. A velvet, red carpet led from the tent to the altar right down the middle of all of the people. At the very end of the red carpet, Draco Malfoy stood with his hands behind his back, looking as handsome as always. Smiling, Hermione made her way down the aisle. Every face looked up at her, glowing and crying with a large amount of pride and respect. Finally, Hermione reached the altar.

"Do you, Hermione Granger, take Draco to be your lawfully wedded husband?" The pastor asked kindly; he was suddenly recognizable as Dumbledore.

"I do." Hermione smiled, staring into the eyes of her future husband. He smiled back at her.

"And do you, Draco Malfoy, take Hermione to be your lawfully wedded wife?" Dumbledore asked.

Draco continued smiling at Hermione. Then, without warning, he pulled a water balloon out from behind his back.

_SPLAT!_

He threw the balloon directly in Hermione's face. Every person on the Hogwarts ground burst out in laughter. They were all laughing and pointing at Hermione. She could hear the shouts of "filthy mudblood" and "ugly bitch" ringing in her ears, particularly by Blaise Zabini and Pansy Parkinson.

"I don't." Draco smirked at Hermione, his arm around Pansy's waist. He pulled Pansy into a deep, passionate kiss, leaving Hermione standing at the altar by herself, her world spinning out of control.

"No!" Hermione cried.

"Something wrong?"

Hermione looked up. She could see her own reflection in the rear view mirror of Belle Strait's transport car. She looked panicked and distressed. It had just been a dream. A crazy, twisted dream. She could also see Bart's reflection in the mirror; he looked worried, but also looked at Hermione as though she were crazy.

"No. Nothing's wrong." Hermione said, forcing a smile. When Bart looked back at the road, she sighed. _This is going to be a long trip._


	21. Two Lives

Two Lives

Finally, after the long, agonizing trip, Bart pulled up outside of a ritzy, gorgeous hotel in the heart of Paris. Hermione could think of only one person she had ever met in her life that was incredibly annoying, and that was Colin Creevey. Well move aside, Colin! First place prize for incredibly annoying now goes to Bart Sanders!

"Do you need help with your bags, miss?" Bart asked, stepping out of the car and opening Hermione's door for her. He extended a hand and helped her out of the car. _At least he has manners, _Hermione thought. _To make up for his annoyingness. _

"No, I'm alright thanks." Hermione said, eager to get away from Bart.

"Okie dokey." Bart said, grinning toothily. "I suppose I'll see you at Belle Strait on the first of December! Until then, farewell!" And with that he hopped back into the car and sped away, leaving Hermione standing on the sidewalk with her luggage in one hand and Crookshanks in the other.

"Ready to begin our lives as outcasts, Crookshanks?" Hermione asked her cat. Crookshanks purred as if to say yes, which gave Hermione the slightest bit of confidence. Poised and ready, Hermione lugged her things up the marble steps of the hotel. A doorman stood ready and waiting at the entrance, smiling at Hermione and opening the door for her. She nodded to say thanks and walked through the door only to be astounded by what she saw. This was like a six-star hotel! The ceiling in the lobby must have been twenty feet high, and four floors were recognizable only by the long, swerving balconies above. Doors bordered these balconies, each door leading to a room. Of course, there were much more rooms in the hotel above these indoor balconies, but the ones that could not be seen were probably for rich, fancy people who requested three or more bedrooms with a high-quality entertainment system and an enormous refrigerator inside the gorgeous, marble kitchen. Hermione shuddered at the thought. Rich people had it so easy.

"Hello," Hermione smiled to one of the receptionists behind the glittering, golden counter in the center of the lobby. This receptionist was wearing a gorgeous blue blouse and matching skirt. Her nametag read Isabelle. Looking at all of the other receptionists and workers in general busting around, they were all wearing the same uniform Isabelle was (well, the men were wearing pants, of course).

"You must be Hermione Granger." Isabelle smiled.

"Yup, that's me." Hermione said. "I suppose you've spoken with Albus Dumbledore-"

Isabelle turned to the guy next to her. "Brad, take Miss Granger's things up to her room for her please."

Doing as he was ordered, the man called Brad flurried over to Hermione and relieved her of her luggage and Crookshanks. Hermione smiled gratefully.

"Yes, I've spoken with Mr Dumbledore." Isabelle smiled. "Everything is worked out for you. You've no need to pay for anything; it's all taken care of. Breakfast is served at seven and dinner is served at six. You are in room 714." Isabelle handed Hermione a key, smiling. "Enjoy."

Breathlessly, Hermione thanked Isabelle and made her way up to her room, noticing that it was not one of the balcony rooms. When Hermione finally reached room 714, she slid the key into the lock and opened the door to reveal a room even more spectacular then the lobby. Hermione's jaw dropped open as she realized that this would be her new home for three weeks. It was like an apartment rather than a hotel room; the bedroom could be seen on the left side of the apartment with a queen-sized bed and huge, polished oak dressers and night tables. Across from the bedroom was a large, gorgeous bathroom with lilac bath coverings and matching lilac rugs. A Jacuzzi sat in one corner of the bathroom while a sauna sat in the other. Dazed, Hermione walked back into the main living room where there actually was a huge entertainment system with comfortable looking loungers and surround sound speakers.

"I could get used to this." Hermione smiled, nodding and plopping herself down on one of the loungers with a good book to indulge herself in and forget all about Draco Malfoy.

The three weeks that Hermione waited longingly to end crawled by so slowly that it was as though time was out to spite Hermione. She spent the days lolling around her room reading French books from the local library or else actually at the library reading Encyclopedias (what fun). She didn't even bother to go out and explore Paris; you'd think that she would want to get out on the town and try to get Draco off of her mind, but no dice. Reading Encyclopedias and books in another language must have been far more interesting for her. However, the weeks did slowly inch away and eventually the first of December rolled around.

Packed and ready to go, Hermione said a quick goodbye to Isabelle and Brad (whom she somewhat made friends with) before exiting the hotel for one last time. Looking around at the crowded streets, she did not see an ugly, green car. Apparently a student from Belle Strait was picking her up to drive her to the school. Hermione dearly hoped that it was not Bart. She didn't think that she would be able to handle another few hours of him droning on about his achievements in life.

Five minutes later, a weather-beaten car pulled up at the curb. It was not green, but a rusty, ugly brown color. Thankfully, a girl stepped out of the car.

"Are you Hermione Granger?" She asked. This girl did not have a trace of a French accent in her voice, which was strange considering she was in France. She was a beautiful girl, though. Her shiny blond hair was straight and flowed all the way down past her shoulders and stopped at the middle of her back. Her eyes were bright and blue which gave her the look of a constantly happy person, and her great smile just added to the look.

"Yup, that's me." Hermione answered, smiling politely.

"Hey! My name is Mackenzie Courté. But people usually just call me Mac. It is so great to finally meet you! Our Headmistress told us all about you! How you're like, a seventeen year old genius!"

Hermione blushed furiously, yet grinned modestly anyways. "I wouldn't say genius, but I can say that it's great to be going to a school where everything is new and challenging, you know?"

"Oh yeah, tell me about it. I went to Beauxbatons Academy before I was accepted into Belle Strait. They're all smart there, but nothing was really _challenging. _I'm so glad that I was accepted into Belle Strait. It's like a whole new world for me."

"What year are you in?" Hermione asked, sliding into the front seat of the car and once again being amazed at how different the car looks from the inside. The phrase _don't judge a book by its cover _came to mind.

"This is my first year. I started in September. I'm eighteen." Mac answered. She was so _friendly! _She smiled nonstop and seemed to always be bubbly and full of life.

The drive to Belle Strait took a little bit under an hour. Mac drove through a carefully planned out route underneath a large lake, so Hermione could actually see the bottom of the lake and all of the fishes swimming above it. It reminded her of a part in the Disney movie Peter Pan…

They eventually rose out of the lake and into a deserted, totally unknown forest. After driving through the forest for about fifteen minutes, the car pulled into a clearing where an enormous, gorgeous castle sat daintily on top of a mountainous hill. The castle was not quite as big as Hogwarts, but it was still incredibly beautiful. It did not emit the mysterious, eerie vibe that Hogwarts did the first time Hermione saw it; instead, it was warm and welcoming in the way that only magic could make something.

"Welcome," Mac said. "To Belle Strait."

Mac and Hermione made their way across the lawn and up the stone steps of the school, pushing their way through the double, oak doors into an Entrance Hall so beautiful that it's appearance alone lightened Hermione's heart. They did not stop there, however. They continued walking up stairways and down bright, beautiful corridors until they reached a large, wooden door. There was a wooden, flowered design engraved around the doorframe, making its appearance look beautifully mysterious.

Mac knocked three times. After the third knock, the door creaked open like one of those in a horror movie, but with the absence of the daunting music it was not quite as terrifying as it seemed.

Mac and Hermione walked into a large, spacious office. Actually, large was an understatement. _Enormous _was more like it. The ceilings were at least twenty feet high and the space was as big as a football field. At the far, far end of the room stood a desk. Behind that desk was a middle-aged woman, standing up and bustling over to Mac and Hermione.

"You must be Hermione!" The woman presumed, smiling warmly. "My name is Elle Warden, you're Headmistress."

"Hello," Hermione said, grinning back.

"Well, it's great to finally meet you. I've heard so many great things. Now, we have a lot to discuss, but first things first." Professor Warden extended a hand. "Welcome to Belle Strait." Hermione shook her hand, positively beaming.

It was the first of December and a light snow was beginning to fall, covering Hogwarts grounds in a sparkling, white blanket. Draco Malfoy, however, was too busy thinking to notice.

December the first. Hermione would be at that special school of hers today. The thought made Draco livid. Why did that school have to accept her right when things got messed up? Was it fate? Suddenly, Draco pounded himself in his forehead with his fist. Fate! Of all the things that Draco hated, fate was definitely up in the top ten. It was stupid, moronic and certainly not real. Nothing is meant to be. _Nothing. _

Draco had gone a whole three weeks without Hermione, and nothing had changed. Well, something had changed. The strong, yearning feeling for Hermione that Draco felt when she suddenly up and left had not dwindled, but instead amplified to its maximum level. Draco couldn't understand this. He thought that if she was away and not around him, his feelings for her might go away and he could return to his normal, outcast life. Ha! Fat chance. The outcast thing was new though, and definitely difficult to adjust to. All of the Slytherins hated Draco with a passion. He became the new Harry Potter, the new Slytherin play toy. They enjoyed throwing nasty comments at him about Hermione and they took pleasure in trying to trip him or jinx him at every possible chance. Of course, Draco was too fast for them. No one had managed to trip or jinx him yet, but his chest still rose every time someone tried. He refused to retaliate, though. For one thing, Hermione would not have approved. She would have whispered in his ear, telling him that it was not worth it and to just ignore them. For another, these were his friends. As much as they had become jerks since the eleventh of November, they still used to be Draco's friends and he hoped dearly that they would get over it one day and accept him back into their group.

"Hello, Draco."

Draco turned around to see Pansy Parkinson standing over him. He had been relaxing by the shore of the lake, watching the water flow once more before it all became ice. Pansy breaking his chain of thought was definitely not inviting.

"Hey, Pansy." Draco said, sighing inwardly. "What do you want? Come to try and hex me again?"

"No." Pansy answered, taking a seat next to Draco and (gasp!) dirtying her shiny, black robes.

"What do you want, then?" Draco repeated, wearily.

"You didn't honestly have feelings for the mudblood, did you?" Pansy asked, getting right to the point.

"None of your business." Draco said, sounding just like Hermione did back when they disliked each other.

"I knew you did." Pansy said. "It's sick, you know. How you could like a thing like her is unknown to me, but at least she's gone. For good. So why don't we just move on and continue with just you and me and no one else."

"Pansy-" Draco began.

All of a sudden, Pansy moved sideways and knocked Draco to the ground. She climbed on top of him and held herself up with her arms, letting her long hair dangle down and sweep over Draco's face. Without warning, she smashed her mouth into Draco's, prying his lips open with her tongue and then jamming her tongue into his mouth and down his throat. She reached down and squeezed Draco's genitals, causing him to jump slightly with pleasure. His testosterone seemed to be controlling him as he pushed Pansy up while continuing to kiss her, then knocked her over to the opposite side and fell on top of her, suddenly becoming the dominant one. Pansy reached both of her hands down Draco's pants this time and wormed into his boxers, grabbing his penis and rubbing it gently in a smooth, circular motion. Draco closed his eyes. It had been so long since he had a woman touch him this way, and it felt incredible. He had a sudden urge to just rip the girl's top off and make long, passionate love to her all night long.

"Damn, Hermione." Draco moaned, thoroughly enjoying the hand job that Pansy was giving him. _Hermione? _He asked himself, instantly.

"Hermione!" Pansy cried, quickly removing her hands and standing up. "What the fuck is the matter with you, Draco!"

"Pansy?" Draco asked, suddenly snapping out of his daze. _Shit! What the fuck is going on? _

"I have _never _been insulted this bad in my entire life!" Pansy exclaimed. She kicked Draco hard. "This is the last straw! From now on your life is going to be a living hell, Malfoy! I offered myself to you. I was all yours; you could have done whatever you wanted with me. You could have fucked me senseless ten times a day every day for the rest of your life if you wanted to! But no, all you can think of is that mudblood bitch. Well, I hope sex with her was worth dropping me, and I highly doubt it. From now on, you're living in hell, Malfoy. Remember that." And with that she turned around and marched back up to the castle in a frenzy.

_Hermione! _Draco repeated in his mind. He must have fell so far into his little 'Hermione world' that he actually believed that Pansy was her for a few moments. Of course she wasn't, though. Hermione never wanted anything sexual. Damn square. Better then being a slut like Pansy, though. How could she make his life a living hell? It already was! Nothing she could do would make things any worse unless he brought Hermione back and then snatched her away again. Now _that _would be hell.

"_Impedimenta!_" A voice cried.

Suddenly, a quick jerk lifted Draco into the air as though ropes had been bound around his wrists and they rapidly rose into the air so that Draco's feet were dangling a few inches from the ground.

"Put me down, Blaise." Draco said in a deathly quiet voice.

Blaise strutted up to Draco, holding his wand out at arm's length and grinning menacingly. "What'd you make Pansy cry for, huh?" Blaise asked, withdrawing his wand and twirling it around his fingers.

"I am not fucking around with you." Draco stated in the same heated voice. "Put me down."

"I don't think I want to." Blaise decided, making a big deal out of it by rubbing his chin as though deep in thought. "I do want to know why Pansy's crying, though."

"None of your fucking business, that's why." Draco replied.

"Ooh, someone's not being very nice considering the predicament he's in." Blaise taunted. "If I were you, I'd be a LOT nicer to ME."

Draco glared at Blaise. He felt like a complete idiot dangling there, unable to retrieve his wand because of the invisible ropes. This couldn't be happening. Blaise was second best next to Draco. And Draco was always in control. Always.

Blaise suddenly conjured up a bat from his wand. A metal baseball bat. Draco eyed it, feeling apprehensive. But still he did not say anything.

"So, what'd ya do to the lovely Miss Parkinson?" Blaise asking, pocketing his wand. "Did you… insult her?" _WHACK! _Blaise took the handle of the bat by both hands and swung it at Draco's leg.

"SHIT, BLAISE!" Draco exclaimed, his leg throbbing with pain.

"Did you… hurt her?" Blaise continued. _WHACK! _He held the handle of the bat with one hand and the tip of with the other, then slammed it into Draco's chest, releasing him from the spell and knocking him to the ground.

Draco clutched his stomach, a searing pain shooting through his body. Even with his leg and chest aching like hell, Draco still attempted to get up. However, before he actually managed to rise, Blaise held the bat up high over Draco as though ready to bash him in the head.

"Or did you completely reject her and embarrass the hell out of her by _still _thinking about that fucking bitch?" Blaise inquired, still holding the bat over Draco's head.

"If you're going to hit me, then do it." Draco said, still clutching his stomach. "But you're not going to fuck around with me like this. Got it?"

"Like what?" Blaise asked. He lowered the bat and jabbed Draco in his chest with it, causing the pain to recur immediately. Internally, Draco was screaming. The amount of pain that one, metal muggle object could cause! But he would not show weakness. He was Draco Malfoy. Weakness was not an option.

"I'm not fucking around with you, Draco. I don't like seeing a faithful, loyal Slytherin cry. Of course, you wouldn't know about that, would you?" Blaise asked. "You know… loyalty? Faithfulness?"

Draco glared at him, but said nothing. Blaise threw the bat on the ground next to Draco, then turned and walked away without another word.

_What the fuck? _Draco cried to himself as Blaise disappeared out of sight. _That was my moment! I should have cursed the little jackass into oblivion! _

"SHIT!" Draco screamed. His voice echoed off of the trees of the Forbidden Forest, and yet no one heard him. His chest rose heavily and his leg felt as though it had been hit by a metal baseball bat. He just did not understand it. Draco Malfoy does not take shit from anybody like that!

_What is the matter with me?_


	22. Another Interference

Another Interference

"I'm Hermione!"

Hermione bolted upright in her warm, comfortable bed at Belle Strait. Sweat had accumulated on her forehead and began to drip down her panicked, nerve-racked face. Her eyes swiveled around as though looking for something and finally came to rest upon Mackenzie as she slept peacefully in her bed. Hermione's two other roommates, Eliza Citray and Sammy Bruthis, also slept soundly. Only Hermione appeared to be having trouble sleeping. The dream stood out clearly in her mind. She had been looking in on Hogwarts from a glass window in the ceiling, and the sight that greeted her was not at all warm and welcoming. Draco, Pansy, Harry and Ron were all closely huddled together at the end of the Slytherin table whispering in hushed voices, but for some reason Hermione could hear them. They were so happy, talking about what they were going to do together during the Christmas and summer holidays, Draco's arm wrapped snuggly around Pansy's shoulder. Suddenly, Hermione burst into the Great Hall and demanded to join them, but they didn't even know who she was. Just some girl barging into the Great Hall acting insane. But it wasn't an insane girl. It was Hermione…

Sighing and throwing off her comforter because of the extreme heat it was giving her, Hermione managed to drift back to sleep, trying with all of her might to forget about that damn Malfoy.

………………………

"Miss Granger, could I have a word with you?" Professor Flectus asked Hermione as the earsplitting bell went off and older, sophisticated students began filing out of the classroom.

Hermione's head snapped up. She had been thinking about Malfoy once more, reminiscing about the last time she had seen him. How horrible it had been. And yet she still could not completely forget him. She could not put him out of her mind like she had Ace and Harry and Ron.

"Yes, Professor?" Hermione asked as she stood up and made her way to Professor Flectus's enormous desk. He was an aged, shrewd old man with much wisdom to tell; it was obvious that he had been teaching at Belle Strait for a long time now.

"Miss Granger, I am going to be forthright with you." Professor Flectus said, firmly. "You are not exactly the brilliance that I had expected after speaking with the headmistress. She spoke rather highly of you, and I had been excited to have the chance to teach you. But you are lacking in effort, and those who do not aspire are those who should not be at Belle Strait. I've seen your work and observed you over the last three weeks, and it is quite obvious that you have the potential to work much more superiorly than you have been since arriving at the school."

Hermione's cheeks flushed as she fumbled with a lose string on her new robes, avoiding Professor Flectus's eyes. She could argue and say that she had been giving Belle Strait all that she has, but she knew in her heart that that was not the truth. The truth was, Professor Flectus was right on the money. Hermione just could not concentrate like she could before. Before she had started her seventh year at Hogwarts, before when she had a relationship with Draco… that determination to be the smartest girl in school had been put out. Maybe it was because of the hours she spent thinking of Malfoy, or maybe it was the mere fact that she secretly _wanted _to get kicked out of Belle Strait and be sent back to Hogwarts to face what she had left behind. Either way, Professor Flectus was noticing Hermione's lack of determination and he was not too pleased about it.

"Yes, Professor. I understand. I'll try harder, I promise." Hermione said.

"You won't try harder." Professor Flectus replied, sternly. "You _will _work harder. You will put one hundred and ten percent into every piece of work that you do and I expect to see an immense improvement, otherwise I'll necessitate a word with the headmistress. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Professor." Hermione said, staring at her feet as though they were the most fascinating things in the world. When Professor Flectus said no more, Hermione turned and left his classroom, exhaling heavily as she stepped outside.

_Finally it's Christmas holidays, _Hermione thought to herself. The three weeks at Belle Strait had not been as wonderful as everyone made it out to be. Perhaps it was because of Draco that Hermione could not fully appreciate the amazing school, but because of her lack of interest in anything, she had not made many friends. Only Mac was interested in maintaining a friendship with her; Eliza and Sammy gave up trying halfway through Hermione's first week at Belle Strait. They found her to be too spacey, so they decided not to bother sustaining a friendship with her.

"Yo!" A voice hollered. Hermione continued walking. The voice was not talking to her.

"Yo, Granger!" The voice repeated.

Startled, Hermione spun around. A tall, burly guy was jogging to catch up with her. Once he did, he just stood there, not saying anything.

Hermione looked at him expectantly. He almost looked embarrassed. Hermione rolled her eyes and continued to walk, leaving the boy behind.

"Granger!" He called again, surprised and almost insulted that she continued walking without saying a word.

"What?" Hermione snapped, frustrated. If he wanted a word with her then why did he say nothing before?

The boy composed himself, putting on a charming face and strutting the distance that she walked away from him.

"I'm Will Tompkins." He introduced, smiling a cheesy smile as though he were a model posing in a tacky, cheery commercial.

"That's nice." Hermione said. She knew that she was being rude; at Hogwarts, she would have never acted like this. But the prospect of finally getting out of Belle Strait and going back to her hotel suite in the heart of Paris for the Christmas holidays sounded so wonderful that Hermione did not want to waste another minute at the school, especially not talking to a guy who looked as though he could not string two words together.

"This is where you tell you me your name." Will said, slightly abashed at her rude reply.

"You seem to already know it." Hermione said.

"I know that you're Granger." Will said. "I don't know your first name."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I'm Hermione."

"Nice name." Will said, smiling that cheesy smile.

"Thank you." Hermione replied sarcastically before continuing her walk down the corridor and back to her large dormitory to gather her things.

Will once again jogged to catch up with her. He was definitely fit, and he sure was not eighteen. He looked more twenty, twenty-one.

"So, where are you off to for the holidays?" Will asked, attempting conversation.

Hermione sighed inwardly. What was the point in being rude if this guy was obviously not taking the hint? "I'm staying at a hotel suite in Paris."

"No way!" Will cried. "That's awesome."

Feeling it would be impolite to not ask the same question, Hermione asked, "What are you doing for the holidays?"

Will lit up like a Christmas tree. He was getting through to her! "Hanging around here, I suppose." Will replied. "By myself." He added as an afterthought.

Hermione nodded. "That's nice. Now if you'll excuse me-"

"Hey, I have brilliant idea!" Will exclaimed, standing in front of Hermione to look at her face-to-face. "You could stay here, and we could just hang out for the holidays. It's better than being by myself."

"Thanks, but no thanks." Hermione replied. "I see enough of this place when it's _not _holidays."

"Oh." Will said, feigning disappointment. His face then lit up once more. "Okay then, how about I stay with you in your suite? It sounds like fun."

Hermione's face shriveled up in an expression that clearly said that Will was unbelievable for even daring to _suggest _the idea. "No!" She cried, not even thinking about it.

"Why not?" Will challenged, walking backwards as Hermione began walking once more, not caring whether she knocked Will down or not.

"Because!" Hermione exclaimed. "What a stupid question! I don't even know you, and to tell you the truth I don't like you much either."

"You grow to like me." Will explained, grinning. "Look, I've heard that you're having a bit of trouble dealing with the work that the school is giving-"

"I am not!" Hermione lied. "Who said that?"

"The point is, I heard it. And to let you know, I'm rather brilliant myself. I can help you out. I've been here for two years. I know very well that they assign a lot of work over the Christmas holidays, and you can't do it if you don't understand it. Let me help you." Will glanced at her with big, puppy dog eyes.

Hermione looked up at him. As much as she despised the idiot at that moment, he had a point. She had not paid attention in class, therefore she would not be able to understand the work assigned. Perhaps Will really could help her out…

"Fine." Hermione caved, angrily. "But you're to stay out of my way when I'm not working, do you understand?"

"Understood." Will said, grinning a huge grin. "I'll go pack. Meet you at the front doors in say twenty minutes?"

"Fifteen." Hermione said, firmly. "And no later, or I'm leaving without you."

"Fifteen it is." Will said. "See you then." He took off down the opposite end of the corridor, leaving Hermione to stew in the misery she had just concocted for herself.

…………………………

_BANG! BANG!_

No answer.

_BANG!_

Finally, at the third knock, Draco could hear footsteps on the other side of the door. Tapping his foot impatiently, he waited until the footsteps grew louder and louder, approaching the entrance. The door swung open and Dumbledore stood framed in the opening, a mildly surprised expression upon his face.

"Good morning, Mr Malfoy." Dumbledore said, politely.

Draco pushed his way past Dumbledore into his vast, circular office, completely disregarding how amazing the room actually was. "The gargoyles let me in because I'm Head Boy."

"Of course." Dumbledore smiled. "What would you like?"

"I'm ready to leave now." Draco said.

"For Paris?" Dumbledore asked, already knowing the answer.

"No, for Zimbabwe. Of course for Paris!" Draco said, irritably.

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow, but chose to ignore Draco's ignorance. "So, you still want to go?"

"Yes. Why wouldn't I?" Draco challenged.

"No reason. I suppose you know why I asked you to wait until the Christmas holidays?" Dumbledore asked.

"No idea. I think it was rather stupid, really. But I didn't argue. And now it's the Christmas holidays. I want to leave now!" Draco demanded like a spoiled teenager.

"I asked you to wait because had you gone earlier, you would not have been able to find the school, just as it is almost impossible to find Hogwarts. But unfortunately, it is not possible for you to leave at this very moment." Dumbledore said, calmly.

"Why the hell not!" Draco exclaimed, furiously. "I can leave if I want to!"

"Mr Malfoy, I ask that you keep a respectful tone, please." Dumbledore said warningly. "Now, as you know you are Hogwarts Head Boy. Madam Rosmerta from the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade has unfortunately grown ill, and she is unable to attend to her customers. She kindly came to me and asked if it were possible for me to come up with two students who could take over for her while she is ill, and the most responsible, most reasonable students in the school would have to be you and Miss Abbott, the new Head Girl."

"I… I have plans!" Draco stammered.

"I am sure that this is not for the entire holiday, but while she is ill I ask a favor of you and Miss Abbott to please assist dear Madam Rosmerta." Dumbledore asked in a slightly pleading tone.

That tone made Draco stop what he was about to say, which was a good thing too as he was about to tell Dumbledore to shove his beard up his ass. "Fine." Draco replied, irately. "Fine. Whatever. I'm not telling Abbott, though."

"Miss Abbott is already informed and is wholly willing to help out the Three Broomsticks. She will be delighted to hear that she has your hand in assisting her." Dumbledore smiled.

"And I won't have her making out with Weasley while I'm working. I'd rather not be sick on the job, thank you." Draco replied, coldly.

"That will be seen to. Good day, Mr Malfoy."

"Whatever." Draco said, turning and leaving Dumbledore's office, his whole plan for seeing Hermione completely destroyed.

…………………………..

"December twenty-second. Three more days until Christmas!" Will grinned, emerging into the living room of Hermione's suite. He was wearing only his boxers, reminding Hermione immensely of Draco when he used to strut around their common room in his boxers as though he owned the place.

"Put some clothes on." Hermione said, continuing to read the _Daily Prophet. _

"Why are you so hostile?" Will asked, plopping down on the sofa beside Hermione.

"I am not hostile." Hermione replied, angrily. Who was he to call her hostile? _He doesn't even know me!_

"You so obviously have guy problems." Will said, simply. "It's the only reasonable answer. I can't see why, though. You have virgin written all across your face. If you're a virgin, then there's nothing worth having problems over."

"I do not!" Hermione exclaimed, mortally insulted.

"So you're not a virgin?" Will asked, skeptically. Hermione was silent, feeling slightly ashamed for the first time about being a virgin. "That's what I thought."

"Oh, like you're not?" Hermione asked.

"Nope. Lost it when I was sixteen. Four years ago… man, it was great being sixteen. Seventeen, too." Will smiled. "Those are the years to just go out there and have fun."

Hermione unconsciously blushed. She did not just 'go out there and have fun.' If she did, she wouldn't be a virgin.

"You know if you're scared about having sex, I can help you." Will offered, acting as though he was being extremely generous.

"Excuse me? How could you help me?" Hermione asked, feeling affronted.

"We could do it. I can't really teach you, it sort of comes naturally. But I can be your first time so that way you can say that you have experience and you know what it's like." Will explained.

Hermione grabbed the pillow on the sofa and whipped it in Will's face. "You're such a little bastard, Will. I should send you back to Belle Strait right now."

"I'll take that as a no?" Will asked, disappointedly.

"You can take that as fucking hell no." Hermione replied. "It's illegal, remember?"

"And if it wasn't?" Will asked, grinning cheesily.

"Then it would still be a fucking hell no. Now get out of my face before I seriously hurt you."

"Feisty." Will grinned, slipping out of the living room as he narrowly escaped another pillow beating from Hermione.


	23. Crossing Paths in Purple Paris

Crossing Paths in Purple Paris

"Draco, a word please?" Dumbledore asked kindly as breakfast finished up. There were only nine students staying at Hogwarts for the holidays, including Hannah Abbott, Harry, Ron and Ginny Weasley. Thankfully, Blaise, Pansy or any of the sixth and seventh year Slytherins did not stay. They had definitely not allowed Draco's life to go smooth sailing since the Pansy incident; something that they'd reminded him of everyday.

Draco dragged his feet over to where the staff table was, looking thoroughly miserable.

"Let me guess," Draco began, cynically. "Madam Rosmerta has just discovered that she has a severe disease, and because of its harmful contagiousness she is unable to return to work until _after _the Christmas holidays when I'm back in school."

Dumbledore surveyed Draco, silently protesting his rude tone but once again keeping silent. "Far from it, Mr Malfoy. It appears that it was only a minor bite from one of the creatures living under the bar that caused Madam Rosmerta to fall ill. A Healer at St. Mungo's determined this and managed to revive her to full health. If you wish to go to Paris, you are more than welcome to do so."

Draco's face lit up. "Brilliant!"

Dumbledore handed Draco a slip of paper. "This is the hotel that Miss Granger is staying in if you wish to see her. I suggest you borrow a Thestral-"

Draco shook his head. "I'm going to Apparate. It's much quicker."

"I highly recommend that you do not travel in that method, Mr Malfoy. You are not old enough to travel the long distance, and you are not quite skilled enough to be able to bring luggage with you-"

"Screw luggage!" Draco cried. Then, blushing sheepishly, he mumbled, "Sorry. But I don't need it. Really, I'll be fine. Good bye, Professor." He turned to leave, preparing to walk the journey to outside of Hogwarts boundaries.

"Draco?" Dumbledore called after him.

Draco turned around, expecting to hear him babble about safety or something stupid like that.

"Good luck." Dumbledore said, smiling with that infamous twinkle in his eye.

Draco gave a small grin and turned to leave once more, ecstatic about finally seeing Hermione and yet worried about the greeting that he would receive once he got there.

………………………….

"Yo, Hermione!" Will cried from his bedroom.

Ignoring him, Hermione continued watching a soap opera, _The Young and the Restless, _thinking about how much her seventh year seemed to be just like a soap opera. Pathetic.

"Hermione?" Will repeated, emerging into the living room. "Seriously, are you planning on watching stupid soaps all day?"

"How do you know what a soap is?" Hermione asked, slightly interested.

"My mum is a muggle. She watched them all the time when I was growing up. This one in particular. She always loved that Victor Newman." Will said, observing the old man on the television. "She always wanted me to be just like him."

"Rich and powerful?" Hermione asked, doubtingly. "You? You need wits for that, buddy."

"I'm not the one doing shitty in school." Will retorted, raising his eyebrow and awaiting a response.

"Fuck you." Hermione replied, clicking off the television. "What do you want to do today?"

Will stood there, stunned. "What? You _want _to do something with me?"

"Well believe it or not, it is slightly better than sitting around here all day. If you don't want to do anything, just say the word and I'll find my own fun." Hermione said.

"But I thought you wanted me to stay out of your hair when we're not working." Will teased.

"Okay, fine then. You don't want to go. Later Will." Hermione said, throwing on a bulbous, pink hat.

"No!" Will cried. Embarrassed at his sudden outburst, he said, "I mean, I'm sure you just changed your mind. That's cool. Let's go."

Hermione stood up and walked towards the door, passing Will on the way. He threw his arm around her shoulder, grinning and feeling proud. Hermione reached up and pried his hand away, leaving Will looking a bit disappointed before regaining his cheesy grin and following her out the door.

…………………………….

_CRACK!_

Draco suddenly appeared out of thin air in a bar in Paris. This bar was much like London's Leaky Cauldron; it was well known with wizards and not very distinguishable with muggles. Only a couple of people turned their heads to see what the loud bang was about, but several completely disregarded it. Draco glanced around as though hoping to see Hermione there. But no, Hermione wouldn't be in a dark, dingy bar. Sighing, Draco pushed the door open and exited the bar. Where to go first?

_But what am I supposed to say when I see her? _Draco asked himself for the first time. _She hates me. She can't stand me. She thinks that everything that Blaise said is true… but I didn't deny sleeping with her. I am partially to blame. Shit. _

A large, plum-colored building suddenly caught Draco's eye. It looked like a French café, and as eager as Draco was to see Hermione, he needed a beer really badly. So, he shoved his way through the crowd of people and entered the café, looking around for Hermione before taking a seat in a vibrant red stool at the bar, praying to god that she would hear him out before slamming the door in his face.

…………………………….

"Shit, Hermione!" Will whined as he and Hermione emerged from another clothing shop, Hermione weighed down with shopping bags and Will carrying a few boxes for her. "Come on! We've been to every store in the city!"

"We have not." Hermione stated, shifting her bags so that they weighed evenly in both hands. "I want to hit a few more stores."

"When you said that you wanted to go out, I didn't know that this was what you meant." Will complained. "My legs are killing me. My back is aching. I want to sit down!"

"For someone who claims to be twenty, you sure do act like a five-year-old." Hermione observed, surveying the street for another shop to tear through.

"Even men hate shopping, believe it or not." Will said, resisting the urge to throw Hermione's boxes in a nearby garbage can. "It's just too tiring. Now, if we could just do something that _I _want to do-"

"And what do you want to do?" Hermione sighed, putting her bags down and glaring at Will expectantly.

"I'll give you a clue. Its long, its fun, its sweaty, and its even more tiring than shopping." Will grinned, waiting anxiously for a response.

"Unbelievable!" Hermione cried, picking up her bags and continuing to walk down the street. "Completely unbelievable! It is _illegal. _Do I have to spell it out for you?"

"So that means that you would do it if it wasn't illegal?" Will asked, hopefully.

"No!" Hermione exclaimed, exasperatedly. She spotted a fairly large French café across the street, shining a bright purple and very attractive on the eye. _Cute, _she thought as she began to cross the deserted street with Will in tow.

"We need to work on this communication between us. It's really bad. Like, _really._" Will pointed out.

"I wonder why." Hermione retorted sarcastically. She pushed open the red, swinging doors and drew in a breath at how cute this little café actually was. There was a bar to the right with cushy, red stools, and tables with multicolored chairs were scattered around the marble floor. It was more like a restaurant, not a café. It was packed with people all jabbering away in French, except for the lonely looking people at the bar who were just having drinks by themselves. Before Hermione could have a really good look around, Will slid his arm around her waist and led her in the direction of a private little table near a window.

"Touch me again and die." Hermione said simply, once again prying his hand away before seating herself in a chair with her back to the rest of the restaurant. _Draco would have hated this, _she said to herself, smiling inside. _Too colorful. Too bouncy. And yet he still would have come, just for me. Too bad it was all a fucking charade. _

"A drink?" Will asked. "Beer? Margarita? Daiquiri? You're pick."

"I don't drink." Hermione shot at him in a cold tone that said he should have known this already.

"Oh, of course. Underage in the muggle world, huh? Another year, Hermione. One more year and you'll have all the freedom in the world." Will laughed. "Okay then, just a pop?"

"Sure." Hermione sighed. "Whatever."

……………………………

"Somethin' gettin' ya down, hun?" The bartender asked, smiling kindly. She was a younger woman with curly black shoulder-length hair, wearing a 70's style uniform. She did not sound French, but she definitely had some sort of accent.

Draco looked up at her, thoroughly depressed. He was on his third beer since he got there, and for some reason he seemed to be stalling his trip to the hotel that Hermione was staying in. Perhaps it was nerves. Well, a few more beers would take care of that in a jiffy.

"Nothing." Draco answered shortly. "I'll have another beer."

The bartender looked unsure about delivering Draco another drink, but seeing as he was the customer, she was in no position to protest.

"Comin' right up." She said, taking off to the back of the bar.

Though his head was dropped in his arms, Draco could still here a person pulling up a stool next to him and taking a seat.

"Hold on a sec." The guy said to the bartender. "I'll get a beer and a pop, please."

The bartender smiled flirtatiously at the guy before turning to retrieve the drinks.

_Hermione likes pop, _Draco laughed to himself. _Or maybe she liked the alcohol. I never asked. _

"Down in the gutter, eh?" The guy next to Draco asked.

Curious, Draco lifted his head to look at the speaker. The man beside him had wavy brown hair and a clean-shaven face; he looked like he was in his early twenties and the huge grin on his face told the world that he was going to get lucky tonight.

"A bit." Draco answered, taking a swig of the beer that the bartender had just brought him.

"I can lend an open ear." The guy pressed, grinning. "I'm Will, by the way." Will caught sight of Draco's wand hanging out of his pocket. "Hey, you're a wizard?"

Draco looked down at his exposed wand and hastily covered it up, nodding to Will to indicate that yes, he was a wizard.

"I am, too!" Will exclaimed, completely excited. "I don't usually see witches and wizards around here except for the ones that go to Belle Strait, and I've never seen you around there. What's your name?"

Draco thought for a moment, then answered, "Bob Smith. I'm a tourist."

"Sounds very muggle. Are your parents muggles?" Will asked.

The thought of Draco being half-blood or even muggleborn revolted him, but he nodded anyways. "Half-blood." He answered through gritted teeth. Draco didn't much feel like Will making a big fuss once he heard that this was actually Draco Malfoy that he was talking to. Of course, Harry Potter was much more impressive, but what could you do?

"You said you go to Belle Strait?" Draco asked, perking up a little bit.

"Yup." Will said, puffing out his chest proudly.

Draco's face fell. Will looked too old to know Hermione. Too bad.

"Well, I'd better get back to my date." Will said, jerking a thumb at a girl sitting at a corner table and grinning an enormous grin. Draco could only see a large, pink hat covering bushels of brown hair; her hair looked like Hermione's. Draco sighed. He should get going to see her.

"Yeah, I'd better get going to. See you." Draco said, getting ready to leave.

"Hold on." Will said. "You still look a bit down. If you want I could show you around Paris sometime. We could go for a beer or whatever."

Draco's lips curved into a small, almost hidden smile. "Depending on how things work out with what I've got to do. But otherwise, sure. I could use a buddy to go for a beer with."

"Wicked." Will grinned. "I'll send an owl."

"Cool. See you, Will." Draco said, waving and leaving the bar.

Grinning, Will grabbed the drinks and rushed over to Hermione.

"It's about time." Hermione said, irritably. "How long does it take to get a couple of drinks?"

"I just met someone. Really nice guy. Bob Smith. We're gonna go out for beers sometime." Will explained.

"Good." Hermione nodded. "It gets you out of my hair for awhile. Now hurry up and drink before I decided to dine and dash and leave you to foot the bill."

……………………………

Draco hailed a taxicab outside and tried his best to explain to the French driver where he wanted to go. Draco was not used to this; this kind of transportation was too public. He should have just Apparated to the hotel.

Once they finally arrived, Draco paid the driver with money that he had exchanged a few weeks back during a Hogsmeade visit and hopped out of the car, racing up to the hotel. He did not thank the doorman who held the door open for him, nor did he pay any attention to the workers in the building who smiled at him and said hello. He came to a sudden halt in front of the large, golden counter in the center of the vast lobby.

"Hello, how may I help-"

"I need to know which room Hermione Granger is staying in." Draco interrupted, impatiently.

"I'm sorry sir, that is personal information." The receptionist said, smiling kindly. She did not seem to notice his urgency.

"I don't give two shits about personal information." Draco said in a deathly calm voice. "I just want to know which room Miss Granger is staying in. It's not too difficult. Just check in that little box of yours."

"The computer?" The receptionist asked.

"Sure. Whatever. Which room is she in?" Draco persisted.

"I can't tell you sir, I'm sorry." The receptionist answered, still smiling like some sort of idiot.

"What is that right there?" Draco asked, pointing to the royal blue curtains behind the golden counter. They made up a tiny room that could only be accessible by the workers.

"It's our office." The receptionist answered, a bit taken aback by his swift change of subject.

"Do you mind if we step in there for a moment?" Draco asked, opening his eyes a bit wider than normal. He looked more adorable then he usually did, and that was saying a lot. It was probably this that made the female receptionist agree; she allowed Draco behind the counter and followed him into the curtained room.

"Look, I really need to know which room Miss Granger is in." Draco repeated. "I'm willing to do anything. Anything."

Now it was the receptionist's turn to be wide-eyed. She giggled and looked deep into Draco's eyes. "That's bribery, you know."

"I know." Draco answered, smirking his infamous smirk. Perhaps it was because he had been drinking, but he really was willing to do anything just to get the damn room number that Hermione was staying in.

He leaned over and pressed his lips against the receptionists; her lips were not as warm and soft as Hermione's, nor did they give him that tingling sense that sent pleasure right through his body just like when he kissed Hermione. He said he'd do anything, though…

Ten minutes later, Draco and the receptionist emerged from the closed curtains. Surprisingly, they had not been disturbed. The receptionist's hair was a fright and Draco had lipstick smeared all over his mouth; but no, they did not do it! Just a heavy make out session, that's all. But it was worth it.

"Room 714." The receptionist told Draco, giggly and frivolous because she had gotten away with making out with a customer right under the nose of her boss and coworkers. "Hope you get what you're looking for. If you need a room, just come and see me."

Draco winked at her before turning and heading towards the elevator. He had never taken an elevator before. It was so fun! He could feel the machine start and stop in the pit of his stomach. Totally awesome!

Once the doors opened on the seventh floor, Draco rushed out and sprinted towards the room that the receptionist had told him. _714…714…714…_ "714!" Draco exclaimed, finally coming to an abrupt stop outside of his desired location.

_Here goes nothing, _Draco thought to himself, breathing in a sharp intake of air before knocking three times on the door. No answer. Okay, four knocks. Still no answer. Impatiently, Draco banged the door with his fist, causing several other people to open their doors and poke their heads out to see what all of the commotion was about. And still, Hermione did not answer the door. Perhaps she was out. Yes, that must have been it. Sighing, Draco pulled up a patch on the floor across from Hermione's door, determined to wait there until she got back. _She'll be so surprised at seeing me that she'll have to take me back,_ Draco thought, grinning to himself. _Yup, it's only a matter of time… she will be mine again._


	24. Awkward Confrontations

­Awkward Confrontations

"Shit!" Hermione exclaimed. The moment she walked through the gorgeous glass doors of her hotel, all of the contents in one of the bags that she was carrying fell to the floor through a hole in the bottom of the bag. Tossing her purse onto a wooden bench nearby, Hermione dropped to the floor and began scooping up her purchases. Will, meanwhile, was howling with laughter.

"Shut up." Hermione growled, cautiously trying to gather the pieces of a broken perfume bottle.

"Please, mademoiselle." The French doorman said. "Allow me to clean all zis up for you."

Hermione stopped attempting to clean and dropped her hands into her lap helplessly. "All right, then." She stood up – glaring at Will for not helping her – and walked towards the elevator, pushing the button for admittance. Will was still laughing.

"Are you an idiot?" Hermione demanded, frustrated by her embarrassing moment. She seemed to be easily frustrated a lot these days.

"Hey, I didn't just split my bag in the lobby." Will laughed, stepping into the open elevator.

"Because I did it on purpose." Hermione shot back sarcastically, following Will into the elevator.

Will pushed the button to the seventh floor, still chuckling quietly to himself.

"Shit." Hermione muttered. "My purse."

"What about your purse?" Will asked.

"I left it in the damn lobby." Hermione replied.

Will snorted. "Idiot."

"Fuck you." Hermione shot back irritably. The elevator doors slid open to reveal the seventh floor. "I'll be right back." Hermione informed, hitting a button and descending back down to the lobby.

Will laughed. "What an idiot." He reached his hand into his pocket and began fishing around for the key to the room while still walking towards it. A broken sneakoscope, some Pepper Imps, a condom, and something undistinguishable. But no key. "Damn it." Will muttered. He looked up, and to his surprise he noticed a familiar head of blond hair slouched against a wall across from his and Hermione's room.

"Bob?" Will exclaimed.

Draco Malfoy looked up, completely shocked to see Will standing there. "Hey, Will." He sighed.

"Stocking me now, eh?" Will asked, grinning jokingly. "I didn't know you were staying here! Lose your key, too?"

"Sure." Draco answered in a tone that clearly said he wanted Will to leave. But Will was too thick to hear it. He was just noticing how messy Draco's hair actually was, as well as the lipstick smeared across his mouth.

"Dude!" Will grinned, knowingly. "You _so _got lucky!"

Draco glared at him as though he were stupid before suddenly realizing that he must have lipstick on his face. He quickly wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, attempting to clean himself up.

"Let's go for a drink." Will suggested. "Before my roommate gets back. She can get kind of bitchy at times."

Draco was about to say that he was busy, but then the thought occurred to him that it was possible he could be waiting there for Hermione all night. Besides, a drink sounded really good at the moment.

"Sure." Draco agreed, taking Will's extended hand and allowing him to pull him up. They walked towards the elevators, Draco becoming excited. The elevators were so fun! He pushed the button, then waited expectantly. There were two elevators, one on the left and one on the right. It was fun trying to guess which one would come first. The moment Draco guessed left, the right lift opened up. Feeling a bit disappointed, Draco stepped into the elevator with Will in tow.

_Bing! _The elevator doors shut and Draco and Will began descending down to the lobby.

_Bing! _The elevator doors from the remaining lift slid open on the seventh floor just as the other closed. Hermione stepped out, purse and revived packages in hand. She walked to her room, unlocked the door and stepped inside.

"Will?" She called. No answer. _Must have finally scared him off, _Hermione thought to herself. She giggled. _About time_.

………………………..

Will and Draco sat themselves down in a small, private booth, both with a beer in hand.

"So, what do you think of France?" Will asked, attempting to make conversation.

"It sucks." Draco answered, chugging his beer.

"No way!" Will exclaimed. "France kicks ass! I've been up in good old England, okay? Trust me, Paris is way better."

"How do you know I'm from England?" Draco asked.

"Lucky guess." Will answered, grinning. "I mean, the accent doesn't give it away at all."

Draco grinned a weak smile. Will was an idiot. "So, you're here with a girl?" Draco inquired, changing the subject back over to Will.

"Yup." Will answered, grinning proudly. "Like I said, she can be a bit bitchy. But she's still hot, so I'm not complaining."

"Girlfriend?" Draco asked.

"Nah. I just met her a little while ago." Will explained. "She looks a lot nicer than she acts, I can tell you that."

"Got her in the sac yet?" Draco asked, taking a swig of his beer.

"Ha!" Will cried. "_You _try getting her in the sac. If you get within two feet of her she'll bite your damn head off."

Draco grinned inside, thinking of Hermione. Will's lady sounded just like her. Except eventually Hermione allowed Draco to get within two feet of her. And then he blew it.

"I could get her." Draco said cockily.

"I doubt it." Will replied. "This girl is totally anti-sex. She seems to have no interest in me, either. For all I know, she could be gay. I mean, what other reason is there to refuse the Will?" He grinned his cheesy grin.

The fresh alcohol seemed to be flowing through Draco's body as he grinned at the thought of such a fun and interesting challenge.

"I suppose we'll see." Draco replied. "When do I get to meet her?"

Will shrugged. "Now, if you want. She should be up in the apartment."

"Awesome." Draco replied. "Let's go." The put their empty beer bottles down and left the hotel bar, both anxious about Will's roommate's reaction to Draco. They rode the elevator to the seventh floor, then stepped out together. Draco followed Will down the corridor, his eyes prepared to burn a hole through room 714 until he could see whether Hermione was home or not.

Suddenly, Will stopped outside of room 714. Not expecting this, Draco crashed into Will. _What the hell?_

"This is it." Will laughed, reaching for the handle. The door was locked.

_It can't be, _Draco thought to himself. _No way in hell. _

"Yo, woman!" Will hollered, trying to sound impressive and superior to his roommate.

"Fuck you!" A girl cried from inside the room.

_Her voice, _Draco thought, instantly going weak in the knees. _That's _her _voice. _

Footsteps could be heard walking towards the door. She was coming. Draco wanted to run. He wasn't ready. This was going too fast. But he would see her beautiful face in a few short seconds. Perhaps that is what kept him rooted to the spot without being able to move a muscle.

The door swung open. Hermione stood framed in the doorway, both hands on her hips with an irritable expression on her face. She glared angrily at Will, and yet Draco couldn't help but notice how beautiful she looked. In fact, he'd never seen her look as good as she did at that moment. Then it hit him. How stupid of him not to have realized it before! He couldn't have kicked himself in his ass. He loved her. Draco was in love with Hermione. It was not just a hopeless, school crush anymore. It was love. Stupid, complicating, amazing love. And it terrified him to the bone.

"Can't you just go away and leave me alone for _two seconds _and give me at least a bit of time to myself?" Hermione snapped, glaring at Will. "Seriously, I just want to-" Hermione stopped dead in mid-sentence. She had just noticed the boy standing next to Will. The flicker of blond hair. The mysterious, captivating gray eyes. Draco Malfoy.

Draco smirked to cover up his brief moment of realization. _His smirk, _Hermione thought. _Just like old times._

"Hermione, this is Bob. Bob, Hermione." Will introduced, indicating the two shocked and confused people in his presence. What a thick dumbass. He didn't even _feel _the tension.

Silence. No one seemed to know what to say.

Will nudged Draco in his ribs. "Say hello!" He whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

Snapping back to reality, Draco realized the situation. This was the moment he'd been waiting for since Hermione stormed out of the Great Hall that evening in November. She was actually here, in his presence. This was the moment.

"Hi." Draco finally said. He extended a hand towards Hermione. "I'm Bob Smith."

Hermione's lower lip trembled. She did not even think to ask why he was calling himself Bob Smith. She hesitated for a moment before taking Draco's hand with her own trembling one and shaking it.

"Hello. I'm Hermione Granger."


	25. Surrendering to Desire

Surrendering to Desire

Will bustled into the room, completely oblivious to the tension that had built up since Draco and Hermione first laid on eyes each other. He kicked off his shoes and leapt onto the couch, putting his feet up and flicking on the television. Draco and Hermione shared a look, but exchanged no words. Instead, Draco followed Will into the room.

"Did I say you could come in?" Hermione hissed quietly, a surge of anger shoving aside her previous feeling of shock and amazement.

"Hey, Will, I can come in, right?" Draco called to Will.

"Duh." Will called back, his eyes glued to the television in the living room.

Hermione, still standing in the entrance, crossed her arms. "What are you doing here?" She spat, carefully speaking in a low voice so she would not be overheard by her charming roommate.

"Chillin' with Will." Draco replied simply. He tried to sound casual. Tried to sound as though he and Hermione had seen each other everyday for the past one and a half months and he just happened to be stopping by again. But the truth was, he was frantic inside. He was not planning on seeing Hermione at that moment; the shock of her being Will's roommate was still in full effect, and he had no idea how to handle the situation.

Hermione grabbed Draco's arm and dragged him into the hallway, shutting the door quietly behind her. She then repossessed her crossed-arms stance and glared at Draco angrily, awaiting an explanation. However, all Draco did was return Hermione's stare while waiting for _her _to say something about what was going on.

"What are you doing here?" Hermione repeated, even angrier at having to ask the question again. "In Paris. What are you doing here?"

"Isn't that obvious?" Draco asked.

Hermione fell quiet. She looked down at her feet, then looked up into Draco's dark, mysterious gray eyes. For some reason, when she looked into these eyes, it was as though everything was going to be all right. It was comforting. Reassuring. _But not this time, _Hermione told herself sternly. _He can't plead his way out of this. No way. _

"Look, I'm trying to live a normal life here-" Hermione began.

"And normal involves asking some random older guy to come and live with you?" Draco interrupted, suddenly realizing that Hermione and Will were actually living together.

"Don't you even start!" Hermione explained, disbelievingly. "It is _not _your business who I am maintaining a residence with! If you must know, Will had nowhere else to go, so I invited him to stay with me for the holidays. But why am I even telling you? It is not – your – business."

"It is my business!" Draco interjected. "This guy is like, what, twenty? You of all people should be wary around older guys! For all you know Will was planning to get you in bed tonight!"

Hermione shoved Draco in his chest, causing him to stumble backwards. "Don't you dare start acting all informative or protective or whatever the hell it is that you're doing! I don't want to hear it. It's none of your business. Period. Now, let me ask you this, _Malfoy. _Why is Will calling you Bob? Did you plot this whole thing and just didn't want me to know yet that you and Will were in cahoots?"

"No." Draco replied, trying to get over the shock of being shoved by a girl. "I didn't want him to know that I am a Malfoy. We're well known, you know. One of the wealthiest wizard families in the world. I didn't want to start a ruckus."

"Get over yourself." Hermione spat. "You may be a Malfoy, but you're no Harry Potter. You're name has been in the mud since Harry came along."

Draco felt as though he had been slapped. If this were anyone else but Hermione, he would have drawn out his wand and cursed the person to hell. But it wasn't anyone else, and it was Hermione. So, he remained silent.

"Oh come on, don't give me the special treatment because I'm a girl." Hermione provoked in a menacing, slightly hysterical voice. "You know you want to hit me or curse me or something. Go ahead. You've already thrown about as much pain at me as I can handle. Why not just add to the pile?"

Draco pulled out his wand. Hermione eyed it warily, but said nothing. He then threw his wand to the ground in front of Hermione's feet. He clenched his fists, head throbbing. This was not how this was supposed to go. Hermione was supposed to be so happy to see him that she'd have forgotten everything that happened and welcomed him with open arms. But instead, Draco was standing with a four feet distance between Hermione and himself, with a throbbing headache and Hermione so angry that she dared to throw Potter's name into his face.

"What do you want me to do, Draco?" Hermione pleaded, sounding helpless and alone.

"Why don't you ask Potter, since he seems to be so much better than me?" Draco retorted, his rage getting the better of him.

Hermione's bottom lip began to tremble. Her eyes welled up, tears fighting to escape. She turned and grabbed at the doorknob, prepared to go inside. However, before she could push the door open, Draco reached for her wrist. She tried to wriggle free, but it was no use.

"Just… just don't go. Please, Hermione?" Draco pleaded.

Hermione stopped struggling. It felt as though every part of her stopped moving, as well. She became breathless. Draco had never called her Hermione. Never. Not even when they were dating. It had always been Granger.

"What?" Hermione whispered, a single tear escaping and trickling down her face. She turned to face him.

"Everything that happened in November, it was not planned." Draco stated. "Well, it _was _planned, but I was never planning to go through with it. Blaise and the rest of the Slytherins believed I would, but I wasn't going to, I swear it. This was all Blaise's concoction, not mine. I didn't want it to blow up like that, but it kind of-"

"Did?" Hermione supplied. "Yeah, you could say that. I was humiliated beyond belief. All that time when I thought that the Slytherins were starting to warm up to me, they were just being nice because it was part of 'the plan'. And you knew it, didn't you?"

Draco nodded his head, looking at the ground. He felt so… controlled. Like Hermione had a leash on him and when she tugged, he went silent. If she ordered him to sit, he would sit. No one had ever had this control on him before, and he hated it. It just wasn't Draco style. But he was willing to shut up at this moment, as long as Hermione would forgive him and take him back.

"If it's any consolation, the Slytherins all hate me now, too." Draco said, hoping that Hermione would develop some form of sympathy for him.

"Good." Hermione replied. Draco looked up at her, and to his enormous relief she was smiling.

Suddenly, the door swung open. Will stood in the doorframe, hands on his hips. "What the hell?" He cried. "I was in there talking to myself for like, fifteen minutes! Someone could have told me that we moved the party to the corridor!"

"Sorry, dude." Draco apologized, grinning. "We didn't want to interrupt your tellyvisser… televish… tele… your TV." He finally said, giving up his attempt at the word television. Hermione giggled, but chose to ignore it.

"I've actually got to run out for a sec." Will informed. "I was watching this commercial for KFC and I got a sudden craving."

"Pregnant?" Hermione teased.

"Go to hell." Will replied. "I want chicken. Want to come, Bob?"

No one answered.

"Bob?" Will asked, looking at Draco as though he were crazy.

"Oh! Yeah, that's me. Bob. Sorry, I…er…zoned out for a bit. Nah, I'll pass." Draco finally answered. "Chicken…er… makes me sick. Just the smell of it can make me puke. It's not pretty, trust me."

"Okay." Will said, a little disappointed. "I'll be back in a bit. Must find the place, first. Later." Will took off down the hallway and turned out of sight, leaving Hermione and Draco standing alone in the long, deserted corridor.

"Shall we continue this inside?" Draco suggested, indicating the open door.

Hermione hesitated, but then for some foolish reason she nodded. Draco placed his hand on her back and led her inside, shutting the door behind him. Hermione awkwardly moved over to the couch, Draco following and taking a seat next to her.

"I really did miss you, Granger." Draco said, secretly kicking himself in the ass for sounding mushy and romantic. This was definitely not a Malfoy-type conversation.

Hermione apologized to the lord for what she was about to say. "I… I missed you, too, Draco. For someone who never really cared for me, you sure do sound genuine."

"I did care for you!" Draco exclaimed. "I… I _do _care for you." _Shit, _Draco told himself. _Why do you have to go sounding all hopelessly romantic, for? _

"How much?" Hermione asked, inching closer to Draco. She wanted to hear him say it. She _needed _to hear him say it. Just three little words, Draco…

"I…" Draco began. _Damn Cupid or whoever the hell invented love! _"I…" Draco sighed. "I love you, okay? There you go. I, Draco Malfoy, love you, Hermione."

Hermione's insides lit up like the fourth of July. Her face broke into a huge grin as she gazed into Draco's eyes, feeling happier than she'd felt for a long time. "I love you too, Draco."

Draco heaved a huge sigh of relief. She may not have completely forgiven him, but this was definitely a start. Who would have thought that three words could have cured everything? He leaned in and softly kissed Hermione's lips. They were so sweet. So… _Hermione. _

Hermione internally sighed. She missed Draco's kiss. They pulled apart, taking a moment to gaze into each other's eyes. Then, Draco leaned in for another kiss. This time, it was not as gentle, but more passionate. Slowly, Hermione's lips parted on their own and Draco's tongue welcomed itself into her mouth. It explored while wrestling Hermione's tongue, the war soon become a battle of dominance. Their tongues soon began becoming more aggressive, fighting for supremacy as though there were no tomorrow. Draco got lost into the war of the tongues. Instinctively, he slid his hand up the back of Hermione's shirt and began undoing her bra.

Hermione pulled away. "What are you doing?" she asked.

Draco suddenly got pulled back into reality. He cursed himself. It was as though he had forgotten that Hermione was a virgin. It just felt so – right. "Sorry." He muttered. "I don't know what came over me. I just got a little carried away."

Suddenly, Hermione grabbed Draco by his shirt and pulled him in to continue the war. Draco had just told her that he loved her. And she returned his feelings. Hermione always said that she wanted sex when she was in love with the perfect guy. And Draco was the perfect guy. Up until now her excuse had been that she just was not ready. But as she was about to argue this point, another popped up in her head. She _was _ready. At that moment, she had never wanted sex so badly in her life. She had the love, the boy, and the willingness… she was ready.

This time it was Draco's turn to pull away. "Hermione, what the-"

"Just shut up, please." Hermione replied. "Don't spoil the moment."

Draco looked into her chocolate brown eyes, suddenly recognizing an eagerness that he had never seen in them before. That's when it hit him. _She actually wants to do it. _Unbelievable.

Following Hermione's orders, Draco stopped talking. Instead, he stood up, then scooped Hermione up into his arms. She giggled as he carried her off into the bedroom. However, no matter how ready she was, she was still nervous. She would finally be losing her virginity. The thought was terrifying.

Draco playfully threw Hermione down onto the bed, then leapt on top of her and resumed the tongue war for dominance. Hermione had a newfound determination – she would not give in. Once again, Draco's hands slid up the back of Hermione's shirt and in no time he undid her bra. He pulled her bra out, then tossed it onto the floor. Hermione began unbuttoning Draco's shirt, her hands slightly trembling. Once all of the buttons had been undone, she slid his shirt off of him and tossed it beside her bra. Hermione placed both of her hands on Draco's chest and slowly moved them up and around his neck, gently kissing him and assuring him that she was still going to go through with it. Nodding, Draco pulled off Hermione's shirt. She suddenly felt self-conscious about her body, but still said nothing. Closing her eyes and inhaling a deep breath, Hermione reached down and unzipped Draco's pants. She pulled them off and threw them into the new forming clothes pile. Draco did the same to her, and soon they were both sitting on Hermione's bed wearing only boxers and panties.

Draco kissed Hermione and began rubbing her breasts in a smooth, circular motion. They were so soft. His hands began to move down Hermione's body until they reached her panties. Looking into her eyes for one last okay, he pulled them down and off. Hermione felt doubly self-conscious. Not wanting to be the only one completely naked, she reached down and pulled off Draco's boxers. This was not the first time that she had seen Draco naked, since he enjoyed walking around their common room the way that god had created him, but it was still amazingly weird that they were both sitting there together on a bed naked, prepared to have sex with each other for the first time.

Draco stroked Hermione's inner thighs, then slowly glided up her body and rested both hands on her breasts, massaging her endlessly. He wanted this to be an extraordinary experience for her. He wanted it to feel good for her. And Hermione wanted the same thing. Hermione had her hands on Draco's shoulders as she continued to kiss him. Draco slowly pulled away. He began kissed her jawbone, then her neck. He continued down until he reached her breasts. Hermione arched her back slightly as Draco sucked her nipple, thinking that it so far felt wonderful. Draco once again stroked her thigh with one, single finger. That finger began to dance up her leg towards her forbidden area. His finger circled her, waiting for the opportune moment. Draco suddenly inserted his finger into Hermione's opening, causing her to jump slightly. After a short period of exploration, he withdrew his finger and leveled his head with Hermione's so that he could kiss her once more. Draco was fully erected, growing more and more energized. Hermione's eyes were shut as she kissed Draco, wondering when it would happen. Then, suddenly without warning, Draco plunged into her. A brief pain shot through her vagina and she winced, but the pleasure was so unreal that it almost completely covered up the pain. Draco gently thrust in and out as he lay on top of Hermione, but as she let out a huge moan, a sudden animal overtook Draco and his thrusts grew harder and harder. Hermione panted as she arched her back and began swaying her pelvis to the rhythm of Draco's thrusts, feeling totally and completely in sync with him. Hermione let out another gasp that caused Draco's thrusts to grow even harder and faster as she tried to keep up with him.

A little while later, Draco and Hermione both collapsed on the bed. They were panting and sweating and almost out of breath. Draco grabbed Hermione's hand, but said nothing. They lay there in silence, savoring the moment that they had together. Hermione did not feel the disgust and repulsion that she expected to feel. Instead, a feeling of joy began to spread through her body, and she gave Draco's hand a tight squeeze. This was the real deal.

Suddenly, Draco stood up and began dressing himself.

"What are you doing?" Hermione asked, a bit disappointed at his abrupt departure from the bed.

"Will could be back at any moment." Draco pointed out. "We don't know each other, remember?"

"Oh, yeah." Hermione replied, grinning.

"Hermione?" Draco asked.

"Yeah?"

"I really do love you."

"I love you, too." Hermione replied. "Bob." She giggled as Draco once again leapt on top of her and enveloped her into an endless kiss, thinking only one thing: _Bye bye, virginity. _


	26. Happily Ever After…Not

Happily Ever After…Not

Draco and Hermione managed to have time to order in room service before Will returned home. It was a good-looking woman who had delivered the food. Draco signed the bill that came with it, tipped the woman, then closed the door behind him. No flirting, no sexy smile, nothing. He had Hermione now, and she was all that he wanted.

"Honey, I'm home!" Will bellowed ten minutes later as he pushed the door to his and Hermione's suite open, arms loaded with leftovers of Kentucky Fried Chicken.

Draco and Hermione were sitting in the living room, munching on food and staring at the television, but not really watching it. Hermione was still jittery from her moments of passion with Draco; she felt like running out onto the balcony and screaming, "I'm not a virgin!" Of course, she didn't. How unappropriate would that be? Still, the thought crossed her mind, that's how ecstatic she was. Draco, on the other hand, smirked inside. Finally, she gave up her 'I want to wait until I'm ready' opinion and just gave in to tempation. _About time, too, _Draco thought. And yet, for a first-timer she was not that bad. As a matter of fact, she was excellent compared to Pansy Parkinson, who'd already had a couple years of experience. Yup, both Draco and Hermione felt on top of the world at that moment.

"Honey?" Draco asked. "Will, I'm not sure if you know, but I don't swing that way. Sorry to disappoint you."

Will let out a sarcastic laugh. "Don't flatter yourself, Smith. I was talking to my beautiful roommate. You guys have fun while I was out?"

Hermione tried so hard not to release the enormous grin that was bursting to escape, but it was impossible. She smiled greatly at Will, then grinned at Draco as well.

Now, Will had already proven himself to be thick. How could he not notice the tension between Draco and Hermione when they first saw each other? But no matter how thick he was, he was still the expert at figuring out anything that was sex related. Draco could see the comprehension dawning on Will's face, and for the first time Draco did not want someone to know that he had just done the deed. Especially not Will.

"No. Way." Will said. "You didn't! Damn, Bob! You are _good_!"

"What?" Draco asked, trying to act as though nothing had happened.

"And you, Hermione!" Will exclaimed, looking down at her. "Miss holier-than-thow is not so holy, is she!" He burst out laughing and went over to high-five Draco, but Draco did not return the hand gesture.

Hermione looked shocked. Surely he didn't know? How could he? "Look, Will, I have no idea what you're talking about, but-"

"So, how is she?" Will asked Draco, completely ignoring Hermione and wearing his goofy, obnoxious grin. "Is she the little sex-kitten that I thought she would be?"

"Will!" Hermione cried. Draco stood up, balling his hands into fists. Then, remembering that Will had no idea that he and Hermione were aquainted, he sat back down.

"Will, you are such a disgusting pig!" Hermione exclaimed. "Completely obsessed with sex. What is wrong with you?"

"Hey, I'm not the one who just had sex with a completely stranger." Will replied smugly.

"Where do you come up with these things!" Hermione cried. "You don't _know _anything, okay? You don't understand anything. You are so completely stupid and immature considering you're twenty years old. Grow up already!"

"Whoa-ho!" Will exclaimed, taking a step back and feining a hurt expression. "That was cold, Granger. Real cold. Now, since my buddy Bob got a turn, I think it's only fair that I do, too. Bob, if you wouldn't mind leaving us alone for a bit-"

Draco stood up again. "No way in fucking hell am I going to leave you two alone." He said in a calm, clear voice.

"Got a crush, Bob?" Will teased. "Well, that's okay. You can stick around for it if you'd like." Will strutted over to Hermione on the couch and sat down, throwing his arm around her shoulder, kicking his shoes off and throwing his feet onto the coffee table.

Hermione pounded Will in the gut with the back of her hand and stood up. "Let's go, Draco. We can grab a drink or something-"

"Draco?" Will asked, confused. He looked over at Draco, who was shooting Hermione a Look. "As in Draco Malfoy? Damn! I _knew _you looked familiar! I've seen you in the daily prophet more than a couple times when I was visiting London! You're Lucius Malfoy's son, aren't you?"

Draco shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about-"

"But the old man died, didn't he? Well, he was a Death Eater, so it served him right. Anybody who follows in with that sort of crowd should be beheaded. You're dad probably got off easy. Too bad-"

"_Crucio!_" Draco bellowed, aiming his quickly withdrawn wand straight at Will's chest.

Will began to scream. He keeled over and his legs were all over the place as he twitched and shuddered incontrollibly. He continued screamed, obviously in antagonizing pain.

"Draco!" Hermione exclaimed, shrilly. "Draco, stop it! Please, stop!"

Draco was filled with a rage that he had never felt before. Yeah, Potter had always found a way to piss him off. But this was beyond Potter. How dare some stranger taunt Hermione about sex, then tell Draco that his father deserved to die a painful, antagonizing death? _I'll show you pain, _Draco thought, focussing more on the spell and causing Will's twitching to become even more violent than before. His screams echoed throughout the room.

"Draco, STOP!" Hermione screamed. Her voice was trembling and tears were rolling down her cheeks. She looked geniunely terrified.

Draco broke the curse. Will fell into a heap on the floor, his legs still involunteerily twitching every now and then. He looked helpless. Almost lifeless.

Hermione ran over to Will and kneeled down next to him, rubbing his back and whispering, "Are you okay?"

With what looked like great difficulty, Will lifted his head to look into the eyes of his torturer. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" Will managed to whisper to Draco, his lips trembling as though he were about to throw up.

Draco stood, motionless. What had come over him? That was an Unforgiveable Curse! He could be sentenced to Azkaban for that!

Will pushed Hermione away with as much strength as he could muster. He slowly stood up, his arms hanging limply at his side. To Draco's surprised, he grinned. But this was not Will's usual, cheesy grin. This grin was evil and filled with loathing. "You're going to wish you never did that." Will said in a deathly quiet voice. "Your Ministry of Magic is not going to be too happy with you. That's…what… a life sentence in Azkaban? You can rot away there for all I care. Good day." Will turned with difficulty and made for the door.

_Oh god,_ Draco thought. _He's going to inform the Minister for Magic! _No. He couldn't. Everything that Draco had been working towards would just be a pile of ashes on the cold, Azkaban floor. His Headboy title would mean nothing. His top grades would be fruitless. And Hermione… he would lose her forever. No. He refused to lose her again. Draco lifted his wand once more, his hand surprisingly steady. Then, in a voice so much like his father's, he bellowed, "_Avada Kadavra!_"

Everything seemed to go by in slow motion. It was like a horror movie. Hermione's mortified scream was just background music as the flash of green light protruded from Draco's wand and slowly, beautifully twisted it's way through the room. And then it completed it's task. It hit Will square on his back. Hermione clasped her hand over her mouth. Only she could see the look of terror on Will's face as he heard Draco bellow those two, deadly words. The last look that he would ever have. Will fell forward and dropped to the floor, instantly dead.

"Draco." Hermione whispered after a long period of silence. "What did you do?"

Draco did not answer. His eyes were glued to Will's lifeless body sprawled out on the floor. Slowly, his brain started working again.

"Someone would have heard the scream." Draco said, suddenly.

"What?" Hermione asked, shocked that that was the only thing Draco had to say.

"Someone would have heard the scream." Draco repeated. "We have to go. Now."

As though someone had read Draco's mind, a loud, banging noise came from the door. "Hello? Is everyone okay in there?"

Draco ran over to Hermione and clasped his hand over her mouth so that she wouldn't scream of fright. Hermione thought that there was no need for this, though. No way in hell would she say a word right now. Too much was at stake.

The banging grew louder. "Is everybody alright? Open up, please!"

"We need to leave." Draco whispered in Hermione's ear. His warm breath in her ear was reassuring and felt like a shield; as long as Draco was with her, she was safe. Everything would be okay.

"We're going to go back to Hogwarts. When I say Apparate, we Apparate. Got it?" Draco whispered, releasing his hand from Hermione's mouth and taking her hand instead. He squeezed it reassuringly.

Hermione nodded. She felt sick. She looked down at Will. He was a rude, horny boy, but he didn't deserve this. Nobody did.

"We're going to knock the door down!" The person outside the door called. "Please back away!"

"Ready?" Draco whispered.

Hermione nodded slightly.

"Apparate!"

_CRACK! BANG! _

The door broke open. A woman and two security guards bursted into the room. They heard a loud crack, but no one was in sight. Then, the woman looked down at the carpet. At the man lying _on _the carpet. She kneeled down, took his wrist into her hands and felt for a pulse. There was none. Her shriek could be heard by everyone in the hotel, except for the young man who lay dead on the carpet, never to hear anything again.

……………………..

_CRACK! _

Draco and Hermione appeared a long way out from Hogwarts. They could see the tops of the many turrets and towers over several large hills, but for once Hermione did not spare a second to appreciate them.

Draco took off towards the school. Hermione whimpered. Silent tears still rolled down her cheeks and her whole body felt stiff and rigid. She could not relax. Draco had just killed someone. Cold-blooded murder. That was how Lord Voldemort had killed Harry's parents. It was sick and disturbing, and every time Hermione thought about it she felt sympathy for Harry and a disgusted, revolted feeling in the pit of her stomach. This was no different. She stifled a sob.

Draco stopped walking. He turned around and looked at Hermione. She was shaking and crying and obviously cold. He sighed, then removed his sweater and wrapped it around Hermione's shivering body.

"What happened?" Hermione whispered, hoping for an answer this time.

Draco looked into her deep, brown eyes. They looked so frightened. "I don't know." Draco mumbled. "I got… I got scared. I don't want to go to Azkaban. If I had let him out of that room, that would have been where I was headed."

"Draco, the Ministry of Magic is going to be involved in this!" Hermione exclaimed. "You don't think they won't find out who killed Will? Even muggle policemen manage to uncover these things!"

Draco dropped his head into the palm of his hands. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to come up with something, but no such luck. His mind was as blank as a fresh piece of parchment. But he told nobody his name. Will was the only person he met in Paris, and he went by the name of Bob Smith. Even though Will found out that he was Draco Malfoy, he was in no condition to tell anybody now. There was no way he could get caught…

"Shit." Will muttered. "SHIT!" He kicked at the snow in the ground and sent a good bit of it flying. He bent down, picked up a handful of snow and whipped it at a nearby tree. "SHIT!"

"What?" Hermione asked. She could not see how this could get any worse.

"Room service!" Draco exclaimed, kicking the truck of the tree and causing his foot to throb with pain.

_Room service? _Hermione asked herself. _How can he be thinking about room service at a time like this! _"What about room service?"

"We ordered room service before Will got home! I had to sign that damn bill!" Draco exclaimed.

"What's your point?" Hermione asked, scared at the rage that Draco was showing.

"I signed it as Draco Malfoy! The woman delivered our food to room 714. A person died in room 714. They'll put the pieces together and check to see who signed that bill! SHIT!"

Hermione's eyes opened wide. She was terrified beyond belief. No way could Draco go to Azkaban, not when she just got him back.

"I have to flee." Draco stated. "It's the only way. I can't go back to Hogwarts. That'll be the first place they check once they put the pieces together. I have to go into hiding. It's the only way."

"No!" Hermione exclaimed. "No way in hell. I refuse to lose you again, Draco. I refuse!"

"We don't really have a lot of options here, Hermione!" Draco shot angrily.

Hermione nodded. "You're right. Okay then, fine. I'm going with you."

"You can't go with me!" Draco cried as though Hermione was out of her mind. "You're the most brilliant witch I have ever met. You need to finish Belle Strait-"

"Draco, they will look at me as an accessory to murder, okay? For all we know, they'll think that it was me who killed him. I'm the one who invited him to stay. It was my room, remember?"

"Shit, you're right." Draco said. "Shit! What have I done? What the fuck is wrong with me!"

"We can't go back to Hogwarts." Hermione said, quietly. "I'll never see Ron or Harry or Ginny again. I'll never see my parents again…" Her voice trailed off as she began to cry once more.

Draco walked over to Hermione and embraced her. "We have each other, okay? That's all we need. But right now, we need to leave."

Hermione nodded to say that she understood. She looked back at Hogwarts for what could have been the last time ever. _Bye bye, Hogwarts. Bye bye, life. _


	27. Fugitives at Large

Fugitives at Large

After hours of walking (and Hermione's gently crying), Draco decided it was about time to stop and set up camp for the night. He was surprised that Hermione had not suggested it an hour ago, but then again she had hardly said two words to him since they left Hogwarts. Luckily, they found a cozy little cave that was just big enough to accommodate the two of them. Draco had conjured up a warm, blazing fire just outside of the cave and now he and Hermione were sitting around it, enjoying it's warmth.

Draco's head was dropped in his hands. _I killed someone, _he thought to himself for about the thousandth time that day. _I killed an actual person. I used two Unforgiveable Curses. I'm just like… oh god, I'm just like my father. _

_Scratch, scratch._

Draco felt sick in the pit of his stomach. He wanted to throw up continuously, but no such luck. Will wasn't even that bad of a guy. Sure, he was a prick, but what happy-go-lucky twenty year old wizard wasn't? Twenty years old. He still had _years _ahead of him to graduate from the top wizarding school in the world and obtain any job that he wanted. He could have been rich and been married and had five kids…

_Scratch, scratch. _

Draco looked up, frustrated. Hermione was sitting on a log a few feet away from him, a conjured quill and a conjured piece of parchment in hand. She scribbled nonstop, her tongue slightly sticking out of the corner of her mouth as she thought long and hard about what to write.

"Do you mind?" Draco asked irratably.

Hermione looked up at him. "No, I don't." she said, before going back to her writing.

"What are you writing?" Draco asked, curiously peering over the top of the paper.

"A letter to Will's parents." Hermione replied, simply. "About how sorry I am for Will's death. Do you have any idea how traumatized they're going to be? How traumatized they might _already _be? We snatched a child away from his parents!"

"He was twenty years old. He wasn't a child." Draco replied.

Hermione glared at him, angry that he was so far away from the main point, and angry at hearing him use past tense while describing Will. But the truth was, past tense was the correct way to go. Will wasn't alive anymore. Simple as that.

"You can't write a letter to his parents." Draco said, suddenly.

"Why not?" Hermione retorted.

"Because! They think you're involved in his death! And what if they trace it back to you or something?" Draco challenged.

"They won't." Hermione said, simply. She knew better than anyone that letters were almost impossible to trace, seeing as Harry and Sirius had sent letters back and forth in his third year and Sirius had never been caught. She went back to writing her letter. The scratching of her quill was enough to drive anyone insane, especially Draco in the state that he was in.

After a few moments of silence, Draco asked, "And how do you expect to get it to them? With our invisible owl? Or perhaps the letter can fly itself. Wouldn't that be a miracle?"

Hermione couldn't stand the sarcasm dripping from Draco's words. He was acting as though Will's death meant nothing to him. Who cares if a young boy died at the hands of an angry child? Obviously not Draco.

"You know what, I'm getting really sick of your tone-" Hermione began. But she was interrupted by the swooping of a gorgeous, snowy white owl and the letter that the owl dropped in her lap. "Hedwig!" Hermione exclaimed, feeling happier than she had since her time together with Draco back at the hotel. It seemed so long ago now…

"Potter's owl?" Draco asked, cautiously. "Don't touch it. It's probably a disguised Howler or something that will give away our location."

"You're so paranoid, Draco." Hermione said, rolling her eyes and unpeeling the back of the envelope. She dug her hand in and pulled out a piece of parchment with Harry's familiar handwriting scribbled on the page.

_Hermione,_

_I pray to god that you get this letter before Malfoy does. ARE YOU OKAY? I cannot BELIEVE that Malfoy would actually kill someone. He's a cold-blooded murderer. Just like Voldemort. And then he takes you as a hostage! It was all over the Daily Prophet this afternoon. Ron and I don't reckon that Malfoy will hurt you, it's so obvious that he's purely obsessed with you. Crazy lunatic. I really hope you get this letter and I really hope you're alright. Ask Malfoy how much gold he wants in order to have you returned safely. I'm willing to pay ANYTHING just to get you back. The Ministry's out looking for you and Malfoy. Don't worry, help is on the way._

_Love, Harry_

Hermione laughed shakily. "Hedwig is a brilliant owl."

"Well?" Draco asked, tapping his foot impatiently. "What's it say?"

Hermione thrust the letter at Draco and watched him closely as he read every word, careful not to miss one. Once he was finished, he looked up at Hermione.

"Crazy lunatic?" he asked, obviously outraged that Harry would insult him. "I'll show him who's the crazy lunatic when I beat him over the head with a troll's club-"

"Get over it." Hermione replied.

Draco reread the letter. "Well, one thousand galleons ought to do it. Is that how much you're going for nowadays? Write him back and let him know."

"Not funny!" Hermione exclaimed. "We've got it all wrong! They think you've taken me hostage!"

"I've read the letter, Granger." Draco said.

"Which means I'm innocent." Hermione said, her heart lifting just a little bit. "They don't think I'm involved!"

"Hurray for you." Draco said, darkly. He poked at the fire with a stick and was determined not to look at Hermione.

"But they know that you did it." Hermione said, her heart dropping once again. Her voice dropped to almost a whisper. "A part of me was hoping that they wouldn't think to look at that bill. But why would they think that you took me for randsome? It's not as though there were any clues pointing in that direction."

"They think I'm psycho." Draco said, simply. "I'm the crazy boy who Apparates out to Paris to find his girlfriend, and then when I find her with another guy, I freak out, kill the guy, and take the girlfriend out of pure anger."

"You don't think that they would have come up with that, do you?" Hermione asked, shocked at the thought.

"The Ministry comes up with whatever they think will sound good in the Daily Prophet." Draco answered. "And that sounds pretty good."

"Oh my god, this is so messed up!" Hermione exclaimed. "What is the matter with you!"

"Excuse me?" Draco asked.

"I hated you with a passion before our seventh year. Everytime I saw you I just wanted to curse you to hell. And everytime you made fun of me or Harry or Ron, I chose to ignore it. I never decided to just pull out my wand and kill you! For heaven's sake, Draco! How can you kill someone? How do you even _know _how to perform the Unforgiveable Curses?"

"My dad taught me." Draco answered, quietly. "The summer after my fifth year, we set aside a lot of time so that I could learn the Curses."

Hermione stared at him, stunned. "I don't even know who you are." She finally said. "One second you're this sweet, loveable boyfriend who Apparates out to Paris just to save our relationship, and the next you're using illegal magic to kill an innocent boy."

"Fuck this, Hermione!" Draco exclaimed, standing up and tossing the stick he was holding into the fire. "I already know what happened, okay? I don't need a replay from you of all people. You don't understand shit. All you're best at is critisizing people for their mistakes. This was a mistake and yeah, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to kill him. But I did, and I believed that the one person who would stick by me through this no matter what would be you."

Hermione's eyes began to mist. "I'm here, aren't I?"

Draco sighed. He dropped his face into his hands and tried with all of his might not to scream as loud as he could. He finally released his hands and looked down at Hermione. "I'm going to bed, alright? See you in the morning."

Hermione nodded and watched Draco disappear into the darkness of the cave. When he was completely out of sight, she conjured a fresh piece of parchment, picked up her quill and began to write.

_Dear Harry,_

_I'm fine, honest. I can't say much here, but Draco is not going to hurt me, so there's absolutely no need to worry. I just don't know what to say. Please send my love to Ron and Ginny and let them know that I'm fine._

_Love, Hermione_

Hermione tied her two letters to Hedwig's leg. She stroked Hedwig's feathers and allowed her to hoot softly for a few moments before telling her who the letters were for and watching her fly away into the night. Soon enough, the darkness swallowed her, and Hedwig was nowhere to be seen.

…………………………..

"I seriously just want to strangle the little fucker!" Ron exclaimed, picking up an orange and squeezing it with all of his might until juice began leaking out of it.

"Couldn't you tell how obsessed he was with her?" Harry asked in a calm tone. "He won't hurt her. I'm sure of it."

"Well then why would he kidnap her?" Ron demanded, licking the juice off of his fist. "What could he _possibly _do with her if he won't hurt her? Use your head, Harry! The bastard's crazy!"

Suddenly, the familiar sounds of swooping owls poured into the Great Hall, dropping letters and packages to their recipiants. A bright white owl caught Harry's eye, though; Hedwig swooped down and landed on Harry's shoulder, a piece of parchment tied to her leg.

"No way!" Harry cried. "I didn't think she'd actually reply!"

"What? Who?" Ron asked, sounding suspicious. "Hermione?"

Ignoring Ron, Harry untied the letter from Hedwig's leg. She hooted indignantly, awaiting a treat from the mountains of bacon and kippers surrounding them, but Harry was too preoccupied with Hermione's letter to pay any attention to her.

"Is it from Hermione?" Ron demanded as Harry unraveled the rolled up parchment and began reading it, careful not to miss a single word.

"Damn it." Harry muttered under his breath.

"What?" Ron cried, acting like an impatient six-year-old. "I want to read it! When did you write Hermione?"

Harry thrust the letter at Ron, dropping his chin into his hand and poking his egg with his fork.

"What the hell!" Ron exclaimed. "Why wouldn't you tell me that you wrote to her? She likes me better than you, anyway!"

Harry glared at Ron but chose to overlook his rude comment. Instead, he said, "She doesn't even sound pissed off, does she? Malfoy kidnaps her and she sounds completely fine with it."

"Maybe they're in this together." Ron suggested.

Harry shot Ron a look that implied that Ron was stupid for saying such a thing.

"No, really!" Ron cried, getting excited. "Maybe Malfoy killed that guy and then Hermione and him just took off together because they don't want to be seperated!"

"Don't be stupid, Ron." Harry replied. "Hermione's not that dense."

Ron's face fell as his brief moment of brilliance was recognized as a thought of stupidityness by his best friend. "Hopefully they'll find her soon." He said, wiping up the drops of juice from the table.

"Yeah." Harry agreed. "Hopefully."

………………………………….

That morning, while Harry and Ron discussed Hermione's letter, Hermione herself was poking at the died-out fire, hoping to salvage it if only a little bit.

"You may as well stop trying. It's dead."

Hermione turned around to see Draco emerging from the cave, stretching his arms and wearing only his boxers. You'd think that he would have been cold seeing as how it was Christmas day, but if he was, he certainly did not show it.

"I just wanted to see if I could salvage it." Hermione replied, her voice a bit icier than necessary. "I could have started a new fire if I'd have liked to."

"I know." Draco said, pulling his pants on. "It didn't look as though the thought had occurred to you."

"I'm not stupid, Draco." Hermione shot back defensively. Luckily Draco did not know about her brief moment of panic in her first year when she needed to make a fire in order to save Ron and Harry from Devil's Snare, but the thought of using magic had not occurred to her.

"I know!" Draco cried. "Holy shit, Granger. Chill out! You've been jumping down my throat since-"

"Since we've had to become fugitives?" Hermione supplied, bitterly.

"Exactly." Draco replied, calmly. He did not want to fight again. Instead, he strolled over to her, wrapped his arms around her waist and began kissing her neck.

Hermione sighed. Why couldn't life just be like this? Just her and Draco, together forever, without a care or worry in the world. Just perfect.

Turning to face him, she allowed Draco to brush against her lips with his own. Missing this feeling of security, Hermione slid her arms around Draco's neck and began kissing him harder, this time forcing his mouth open and sliding her tongue in to continue the tongue war from the day before. Slowly and gracefully, Draco and Hermione fell to the ground.

"You can't do this everytime I'm angry at you, you know." Hermione said, pulling away from Draco for a brief moment.

"I know." Draco said. He continued to kiss her while pushing off her robes at the same time. Now, Hermione knew that the middle of nowhere wasn't the best place to do it, especially when you're on the run from the Ministry, but what the hell They deserve a break.

Soon enough, Hermione was stripped down to a bright, yellow thong, while Draco was still sporting his boxers. Draco smiled, then kissed her gently on her lips. Slowly, his lips trailed down to her collar bone, not stopping until they reached her breasts. He bit lightly on her nipple, sending a tingling sensation down her spine.

Hermione had had enough. She was sick of Draco taking all of the initiative just because he was the one with a load of experience. Reaching down, she pulled off Draco's silky purple boxers, then took his hands and placed them on her thong, silently telling him to remove them.

Draco smirked, pleased to see Hermione's sense of enthusiasm, then pulled the thong down. Hermione's now-familiar sense of self-consicousness swept over her once again, but she pushed it aside, only wanting to be with Draco at that moment. She took Draco's length into her hands and began stroking it until it instantly became erected. Draco looked into Hermione's deep, brown eyes, realizing how badly he wanted her. Screw this fucking around, he needed to be inside of her. Pushing Hermione up and making her fall onto her back, he pounced on top of her, kissed her hard and hungrily thrust himself into her. Hermione noticed that it had not hurt so much this time as it had before, much to her happiness. She loved the feeling of Draco inside of her. She moaned his name and arched her back, yearning for more force. Draco did not have to be told twice. His thrusts grew harder and faster as Hermione's moans and cries grew louder, and once again that feeling like they were both on the exact same line on the exact same page came crawling back. It was incredible.

……………………………..

A couple of hours later, Hermione awoke on the hard, dirt ground outside of the cave. It was amazing how exhausting sex was, but it was definitely well worth it. She sat up, realizing that Draco was no longer beside her with his arms wrapped around her, but he had put a light blanket over her. _How sweet, _she thought, smiling to herself. She stood up with the blanket wrapped around her body, then walked over to the cave, assuming that that would be where Draco was. However, when she peered inside, Draco was nowhere to be seen. _Strange, _she thought. She walked back to the dead fire, completely stumped at Draco's whereabouts. Then she noticed a piece of parchment underneath a rock laying in the pit of the fire. Suddenly, her stomach dropped. She could not explain it, either. It was just a piece of parchment. Nothing special. Probably Draco telling her that he'd gone out looking for food or something. Beside the parchment was a petite, lilac box.

Bending over, she picked up the box. She undid the tiny ribbon wrapped around it and opened the top of the box. Inside was a ring. Hermione gasped. It wasn't an engagement ring. More of a promise ring. Real diamonds lined the golden band, and on the inside of the ring was an engravement: _D+H 4EVER._

Hermione smiled as her eyes began to water with joy. The ring was so beautiful. But why wouldn't Draco present it to her himself? Remembering the piece of parchment, she opened it up with unexplained trembling hands, revealing Draco's cute, scribbled handwriting.

_Hermione,_

I can't do this. It's quite obvious from Potter's letter that they know you're innocent, so if you go back to Hogwarts than you will not be convicted by the Ministry. I, on the other hand, will be. I am quite aware that you are now only staying with me because you do not want us to part, but I refuse to ruin your life just because I have ruined mine. I would have taken you back to Hogwarts, but I know you too well. You would not have agreed with this. So, I leave you with this letter and hopefully you'll go back to Hogwarts and carry on your life without me. Graduate Hogwarts, get married, have kids. I would love more than anything to do all of these things with you, but I just can't. I'm sorry, Hermione. Please forgive me and remember that I will always love you. Always.

_Love, Draco_


	28. The Aftermath

The Aftermath

"Professor Dumbledore!" Hermione cried as she burst through the doors of the Great Hall, panting and trying to catch a breath. It was dinnertime, and Hermione had practically run the whole way back to Hogwarts. She had a stitch in her side and her legs burned like hell, but she just didn't care.

Harry and Ron, two of the very few people remaining at Hogwarts for the Christmas holidays, looked up at Hermione in shock. One moment, they believed she had been kidnapped by Malfoy, and the next she was barging through the Great Hall, demanding to see Dumbledore.

"Hermione!" Harry and Ron exclaimed, standing immediately. Hermione ignored them, however. Instead, she marched through the Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw tables right up to the front of the Great Hall, where Dumbledore sat eating his dinner along with his fellow professors. For some reason, he did not seem as shocked to see Hermione as Harry and Ron did. McGonagall, on the other hand, did.

"Miss Granger!" She cried, standing up from her table and rushing over to the other side. She pulled Hermione into a tight embrace. "Thank goodness you're all right! We've all been so worried!"

"Minerva," Dumbledore said gently. "If you don't mind, I'd like a word with Miss Granger."

Hermione smiled gratefully, always in awe that Dumbledore seemed to know exactly what she was thinking every time.

"Of course!" McGonagall cried, wiping away her tears of joy. "Shall I inform the Ministry-"

"Not yet." Dumbledore answered, sharply. "Wait until I am finished speaking with Miss Granger."

"Of course, Albus." McGonagall said, smiling at Hermione as though she were her long-lost daughter.

Hermione followed Dumbledore out of the Great Hall, completely avoiding the eyes of Harry and Ron. She followed him into the spare classroom nearest to the Great Hall and paced across the room as Dumbledore gently closed the door.

"Miss Granger, what happened?" Dumbledore asked, getting straight to the point.

Hermione took a deep breath. She had been practicing her story the entire way. "It's not what anybody thinks!" She cried. "It's completely the opposite, actually. Draco and I were in my hotel suite and then Will walked in and saw us together and he flipped out and he pointed his wand at himself and then cried the Avada Kadavra curse. And then he just… died." She finished, lamely. All of this had been said rather quickly, and Dumbledore did not look too convinced. Inside, Hermione was stupefied. How could she have come up with such a stupid story? In her head, it sounded alright, but out loud? No one would kill themselves with an Unforgivable Curse just because they walked in on a girl that they've known for a week with another man. Least of all, Will. But Hermione could not tell him the truth. Yes, Dumbledore was understanding, but certainly not _this _understanding. Draco had killed someone for absolutely no reason, and for that he _did_ deserve a life sentence in Azkaban. But Hermione could not bare that if it happened.

"Where have you and Mr Malfoy been for the past twenty-four hours?" Dumbledore asked, surveying Hermione like he always did.

"Draco knew that we would be blamed for it." Hermione answered, remembering what she had rehearsed in her head. "And he didn't want to risk being thrown into Azkaban. So, we fled. But then Harry sent me an owl that said that everyone knew that I was innocent and Draco forced me to return. He knew that no one would believe the _true _story. I'm supposed to keep my mouth shut but I don't believe that someone should be on the run for a crime that they did not commit." Hermione could not believe that she was lying flat-out to a teacher's face. Not just any teacher, either. The Headmaster. Unbelievable.

"Residents and employees of the hotel say that they heard screams." Dumbledore said, staring at Hermione.

"That was Draco and Will fighting. They were both extremely angry with each other, Will more than Draco, of course." Hermione answered. She hated lying. And she sounded so… _conceited. _As if two boys would fight over her. Whatever.

"A young man died yesterday, Miss Granger." Dumbledore informed, continuing to study her as though analyzing whether she was lying or not.

"I know." Hermione said, looking at her feet. "I know. But Draco is not responsible. Please, surely you can do something-"

"I will inform the Minister for Magic of your rendition of the story." Dumbledore interrupted. "Surely they cannot convict a boy who is innocent. Hopefully I can get this all cleared up. Until then, please stay out of trouble, Miss Granger." Dumbledore did not sound convinced at all, though. Hermione did not even realize what a horrible actress she was. All she cared about was Draco's quick and safe return.

"Yes, Professor." Hermione replied, heading for the door.

"Oh, and Miss Granger?" Dumbledore called after her.

She turned around. "Yes, Professor?"

"It's wonderful to have you back." Dumbledore said, smiling with that infamous twinkle in his eye. Hermione knew what he meant. She was certainly not going back to Belle Strait. She would continue the remainder of the school year at Hogwarts, then perhaps attend Belle Strait when she felt completely ready to make the commitment. Grinning slightly for the first time since she had laid eyes on her ring, she closed the door gently behind her.

……………………………..

"What happened?" Harry and Ron demanded, cornering Hermione as she approached her dormitory.

Hermione inwardly sighed. She did not feel like discussing it, especially not with Harry. All she could think of was Draco. How could he just desert her like that? Leave her in the middle of nowhere, not knowing when or if she would ever see him again. Did he not care for her at all?

"Turtle Snout." Hermione said to the portrait of the mermaids. If there was anything at Hogwarts that she did not miss, it would certainly have to be them.

The brunette mermaid giggled. "Nope. Try again."

"Shit." Hermione muttered under her breath. Of course they'd have changed the password.

"What happened?" Harry repeated.

"Nothing." Hermione answered, slouching against the wall beside the portrait and dropping her head into her hands.

"Bullshit!" Harry cried. "Where is Malfoy? Is he dead? If not, I'll kill him myself-"

"Shut up!" Hermione cried, hysterically. "I don't want to talk to you, Harry! In case you don't remember, we weren't on the best of terms since I left!"

"Harry, get lost." Ron ordered, immediately.

"Ex_cuse _me?" Harry said, glaring at Ron.

"Well, obviously she doesn't want to talk to you." Ron pointed out.

"whose side are you on?" Harry demanded.

"Right now, I want to know what happened, okay? I'm not going to find out if you don't get lost. So, go."

Harry continued his long, menacing glare at Ron. Finally, he said, "Fine. Whatever. I don't care." Turning around, he stalked down the corridor and turned out of sight.

Ron turned to face Hermione. He did not say anything. Instead, he pulled her into a deep embrace. "I'm so happy you're alright!" He exclaimed. "I was so worried! I mean, yeah, Malfoy probably wouldn't have done anything to you. But still, anything was possible. Imagine if you… if you _died._ That would have been unbearable! It's just good to see you!"

Hermione smiled, despite herself. "It's good to see you too, Ron. But I'm not going to tell you what happened, and I'm not going to tell you where Draco is, so if you don't mind-"

"Hermione!"

Hannah Abbott climbed out of the portrait hole to the Head Boy and Head Girl dormitories and immediately pulled Hermione into a tighter embrace than Ron's.

"Hey, Hannah." Hermione smiled. "What are you doing here? It's Christmas Holidays. You should be at home with your family."

"I'm new Head Girl. It's my duty to stay for the holidays. But forget that! What happened to _you_?" She cried, almost in tears at the sight of Hermione. They had never really been friends, but Hermione was Hannah's boyfriend's best friend, and Hannah still liked Hermione a lot.

"Just… things." Hermione said, lamely. "But I'm alright, honest."

"You probably want to lie down, don't you?" Hannah asked, completely dropping the subject of her whereabouts. "The password is Quentin's Gift."

"Quentin's Gift?" Hermione asked, curiously.

"Some sort of underwater treasure." Hannah whispered. She jerked her thumb at the mermaids. "They're choice, not mine."

"Let's go." Ron pushed, sliding his arm around Hannah's waist and leading her away, giving Hermione one last sympathetic look before turning the corner and disappearing from sight.

Hermione sighed. Draco had seldom every held her waist like that in public, or held hands with her, or do any of the things that normal couples did. There was just never time. After Draco's plan was exposed, things went so downhill. But then he actually came to Paris to salvage their relationship. He wanted it to work. And then out of nowhere one wizard dies while the man of Hermione's life leaves her for what could potentially be forever. A tear slid down Hermione's cheek.

"Quentins Gift." Hermione said, repeating what Hannah had told her.

The mermaid glared at her. Obviously she had not wanted to allow entrance to Hermione, but since she knew the password, the mermaid did not have a choice in the matter. The portrait swung open, and Hermione climbed inside. The dormitory looked almost the exact same as it had when she'd left it.

Hermione collapsed on the sofa, extending her hand and examining the gorgeous ring on her finger. The ring that Draco had given to her. _Oh god, Draco, _Hermione thought to herself, feeling a strong surge of tears coming on. _Please, please come back. I don't think I can live without you. _

………………………….

"Come on, Hermione." Ron pushed. "Eat _something. _It's been a week since you've been back! You can't starve yourself!"

"Yeah, Hermione." Hannah agreed, pushing some chicken towards her. "You've got to eat. It's New Years! The time to celebrate the birth of a brand new year. For all you know, this could be the best year yet."

Hermione poked at her chicken. _I doubt it, _she thought. She, Ron and Hannah were eating dinner in the Great Hall, luckily not in the company of Harry. Ron's rude dismissal towards Harry had caused a rift in their friendship, but with Hannah and Hermione to keep him company, Ron was not complaining. Harry had been a completely different person every since he'd fallen in love with Hermione, anyway.

And still, there had been no word from Draco. Not one. Hermione had absolutely no idea where he was at the moment; for all she knew, he could have been in the Caribbean, lounging back and drinking Daiquiris while on a beach surrounded by gorgeous, model-like women. _Of course he's not, _Hermione told herself. _He's on the run. _

Hermione had requested to speak with Will's parents, as well. A couple days earlier, they had come down to Hogwarts to hear what Hermione had to say. They were very sympathetic towards her, and still extremely distressed by their son's death. They hugged her and told her how happy it was that at least one of them had made it out of their alive. Hermione could not bare their kind words, but she nodded and managed to get through the meeting in one piece without breaking down and spilling the truth.

"Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked as he entered the Great Hall, spotting Hermione at once. "A word, please?"

Hermione stood up so quickly that Hannah flinched. She then followed Dumbledore into the same empty classroom that they had been in only a week before.

"Well?" Hermione asked, impatiently. "What did the Ministry say?" She had been asking Dumbledore this question twice a day for the last week, and every day the answer was the same. "Still no word, Miss Granger". "The Ministry needs time, Miss Granger".

"The Minister for Magic does not believe your story." Dumbledore informed. "And nor, I'm afraid, do I. I apologize, Miss Granger, but people will do anything in the face of love, including lying to save their loved one's life. I cannot do anything if Mr Malfoy did kill William Tompkins, and even if I could, I wouldn't. A life has been lost, and for that I do not sympathize with its cause."

Hermione looked away, ashamed. She wanted to yell at Dumbledore and tell him that her story had been the truth. That Draco had not killed Will, and the Ministry and Dumbledore should just go to hell. But she couldn't, because she knew that Draco had in fact killed an actual person. Deep down inside, Hermione could no longer fight for Draco, purely for the fact that it would just be an insult to Will's memory.

"I do, however, believe that you are innocent." Dumbledore continued. "And it is confirmed that there will be no charges pressed against you. I know that this is not what you wanted to hear, Miss Granger. I'm sorry. I have also spoken with Cornelius Fudge. He was very persistent on meeting with you, but I've convinced him that you are of no use for Draco's whereabouts."

Hermione nodded, feeling a wave of hot tears about to escape.

"I must get back to my office." Dumbledore said, almost uncomfortably.

"Bye, then." Hermione said. Dumbledore gave Hermione one last sympathetic look before leaving the classroom and shutting the door gently behind him. The moment the door closed, Hermione broke down into tears. She fell to the floor, clutching her stomach but not even bothering to try and stop the tears flowing down her face and into her wavy, brown hair. She may never see Draco again. Ever.

………………………………..

"Hermione, what are you_ doing_?" Ron asked. He and Hannah had just returned to the Head Boy and Girl common room, where Hermione was supposedly doing her homework. Ron was still Head Boy and Hannah was still Head Girl; Dumbledore felt that Hermione needed time before becoming burdened with her Head Girl duties. Ron and Hannah, however, still allowed Hermione to work on her homework in their common room. It had been two weeks since New Years, and nothing with Harry had changed. Hermione wanted to spend as less time as possible in his presence, so she took refuge with Ron and Hannah before curfew rolled around.

Hermione had been scribbling away on a piece of parchment at one of the two desks near the fireplace; her tongue stuck out of the corner of her mouth and her eyebrows furrowed furiously. Obviously she was concentrating very hard on something, but it did not look like homework to Ron. That determined expression was familiar, somehow…

"Spew!" Ron cried, snatching away the parchment and reading the title. "Bloody hell! I thought you'd given up on that ages ago!"

Hannah giggled. "Hermione, you've seriously got to let that go. House-elves do not want freedom, and they certainly don't want S.P.E.W."

"See, that's where you're wrong." Hermione replied, all-knowingly. Then she rethought what she had said. "Okay, maybe you're right. But eventually, you'll be wrong. House-elves _do _want to be free, they're just too frightened to stand up for themselves. You mark my words, I'll have them free. They will be free."

"Hermione, they don't-" Ron began.

"They will be free!" Hermione cried. Her eyes began to well up and burn as she fought so hard to keep the flow of tears from escaping. "They have to be! They have to be _free_." Tears began poring out of her eyes. _Free. _That was all that she wanted for Draco. But it wouldn't happen. Not now, not ever.

"Hermione." Hannah said, gliding over to her and sliding an arm around her shoulder. Hermione dropped her head onto Hannah's shoulder, crying nonstop. "Just… just let me do this, okay? Don't criticize me. Help me. All I want is help."

Ron nodded, feeling a deep surge of sympathy for Hermione. "Definitely. Of course we'll help you."

Hannah nodded enthusiastically. "We'll force those house-elves to see what they're missing!"

Hermione smiled gratefully. Neither Ron nor Hannah liked Draco, but they certainly seemed to understand Hermione's feelings for him. Perhaps it was because of their own relationship, but either way they were being so supportive that all Hermione could do was grin and allow Hannah to squeeze her tight, finally feeling loved for the first time since… Shaking her head slightly, Hermione sighed. For the first time since Draco.


	29. Life Can’t Get Any Worse

Life Can't Get Any Worse

"Well, well, mudblood. We meet again."

Hermione sighed. She was one of the only one's left in the Great Hall for supper. Everyone must have left. She slightly remembered Ron and Hannah telling her that they would be in the Common Room, but their voices had seemed so far away.

"What, Blaise?" Hermione asked, suddenly anxious to get as far away from him as possible. She thought that she had gotten lucky, since it was already mid-January and Blaise had still not approached her. Apparently she had jinxed herself.

"Nothing." Blaise smirked. "I was just wondering if the rumors were true. Did our dear Draco actually kill some stupid wizard?"

"Fuck you." Hermione shot back, defensively. "Will was not stupid."

"So it is true." Blaise grinned. "I guess Draco does still have a bit of Malfoy in him. And we'd all thought that you had sucked it all out of him."

"Our relationship had nothing to do with you!" Hermione exclaimed. "And yet, you still butted in! Will's death is your fault, not Draco's! If you know what's good for you, you'll go and tell the Ministry that it is completely your fault and they should give up the search for Draco! Or you know what, better yet, just go and kill yourself. Either one is fine with me. Just do _something._"

"Or else?" Blaise replied, threateningly.

"Or else I'll kill you myself." Hermione whispered. "Don't fuck with me, Blaise, or it will be the last thing you do. I guarantee it."

And with that, Hermione picked herself up from the Gryffindor table and left the Great Hall, leaving a stunned Blaise behind with it.

……………………………

"This is such crap." Ron whispered to Hannah a month later as he flipped through a stack of parchment that Hermione had made suggestions on for S.P.E.W. "Give them wages? Give them holidays? Allow them executive positions? Allow them to work _in the Ministry of Magic_? She's gone nuts!"

Hannah shushed Ron angrily, not wanting him to upset Hermione. Ron sighed and continued to sort through the suggestions, unbelievably awed at the foolhardiness of each one.

Hermione, on the other hand, was tapping her pencil impatiently against her oak desk, obviously thinking hard about something to do with S.P.E.W.

"What is it, Hermione?" Hannah asked, glancing at the pieces of parchment that lay sprawled over the desk that Hermione's sat at.

"Finance!" Hermione cried, frustrated. "How are we supposed to finance this? Believe it or not, I'm not the richest person in the world."

"Hear, hear!" Ron agreed, stretching his arms and leaning back in his chair, prepared to take a long, relaxing break.

"I'm sure we can think of _something_." Hannah said, uselessly.

"We can't." Hermione replied. "There's nothing. Gringotts usually refuses loans to witches and wizards under the age of twenty unless it is for a good cause like Belle Strait or something. And I'm willing to bet all of my galleons that those goblins would not consider House-Elf organizations as a good cause."

"I'd put some galleons on that." Ron said.

Hannah glared at him. "What about Harry-"

"No." Hermione interrupted, firmly. "I refuse to go to Harry with this. I don't want his money, nor will I accept it under any condition. Besides, the way we've treated him and vice-versa, I'd doubt that he would support us anyway."

Ron wore an expression that clearly said _duh! _Hannah jammed her elbow into his arm.

"Ouch! What was that for?" Ron whined, rubbing his soon-to-be bruised arm.

"For being so negative!" Hannah exclaimed. She turned to Hermione. "Okay, so Harry and Gringotts are out of the question." She sighed. "Don't worry, Hermione. I'm sure we'll think of something."

"No one wants to finance something that will help poor house-elves causes. But this is exactly what we're fighting for. I'm not worried. This will work eventually, I'm sure of it." Hermione said, determinedly.

"I'm sure it will." Ron replied with not as much enthusiasm as Hermione would have liked. "Can we go down to breakfast now? I'm starving."

Hannah rolled her eyes. "What a surprise."

Hermione giggled. "Let me just put all of this in our dormitory." She gathered all of the parchment sprawled on the desk, as well as on the floor, and dashed out of the library, heading for the Head Boy and Girl dormitory.

Dumbledore had offered Hermione's position as Head Girl back to her towards the end of January, but Hermione had declined. She did not want such a large responsibility anymore. Screw Head Girl. She didn't need it. But what she _did _need was a place to stay, other than the Gryffindor Common Room. So, Ron and Hannah generously offered her Hannah's Head Girl bedroom. Hannah had been sleeping in Ron's bedroom. Hermione was not sure if they were having sex or not, but it was still kind that Hannah would offer her bedroom.

Hermione stated the password to the mermaids and quickly crawled through the portrait hole, emerging into the Common Room. She tore through the Common Room and raced to her bedroom, dropping off the load of parchment on her night side table. Just as she turned to leave, a sudden impulse caused Hermione to stop and twirl the ring that Draco had given her around her finger. Instead of leaving, she sat down on her four-poster bed and gazed up at the calendar pinned to the wall above it. Each day was crossed off with a permanent red marker. Hermione picked up the marker that sat on her night side table and crossed off another day. Sighing, she pulled the calendar down and began flipping through the months. It had been almost two months since Christmas. Since Hermione had last spoken with Draco.

Staring at the calendar, Hermione tried desperately not to cry. It was February 14. Valentine's Day. Ron had gotten her a box of chocolate and Hannah had gotten her a tiny, plush teddy bear. But Hermione did not want these things. It was _Valentine's Day. _The most romantic day of the year. She wanted to be spending every moment of it with Draco, not with her two best friends who most likely wanted to spend it together, romantically. More than ever, Hermione felt like a third wheel. She missed Draco. Just to hear from him would be incredible…

Sighing once more, Hermione pinned the calendar back up against the wall and slowly headed down to the Great Hall, dreading the breakfast that she would have to eat with Ron and Hannah.

"Took you long enough." Ron teased, stuffing a muffin coated in pink icing into his large, open mouth. "We'd thought you'd gotten lost or something."

Hannah giggled, leaning over and pecking Ron on his stuffed cheek. She seemed to be in a much better mood now, as opposed to earlier that morning when she seemed to be huffy with Ron for just about everything. Hermione smiled despite herself, happy to see that at least _one _couple was able to celebrate the romantic holiday together.

"Mail!" Hannah cried, gazing up and watching the swarm of owls swoop into the Great Hall and deliver their packages to the various recipients. To Hermione's surprise, three deliveries arrived for her. One was the Daily Prophet. Another was quite obviously from Ron's mother, with heart-shaped cookies enveloped in a beautiful pink gift-wrap. Grinning, Hermione looked over at Ron, who was blushing sheepishly, and then at Harry, who sat a little ways away down the Gryffindor table, also opening a package from Mrs Weasley. She felt a small surge of sympathy for him; at least he received something from Mrs Weasley. That made Hermione feel a little bit better about completely deserting Harry, although there was still a small bit of guilt in the pit of her stomach.

Trying to shake the guilt off, Hermione looked down at the remaining package in front of her. It was a small box, with a slip of parchment attached to it. Wondering who it could be from, Hermione eagerly tore the box open. Inside was a slim, golden chain, with a small heart pendant bordered with shimmering diamonds hanging from it. _Odd, _Hermione thought. _It looks just like my ring. _A sudden excitement overcame Hermione. It was from Draco! She quickly opened the attached parchment and began to read it:

_Hermione, _

_Happy Valentine's Day.__ I just thought you should know that the day I went to see you at your hotel suite, I was planning on giving you this ring/necklace set. They belonged to my great-grandmother. They are very precious Malfoy heirlooms, and I wanted you to have them. I can't tell you where I am, but I can tell you that I'm fine and I'm thinking about you every damn day. This is _killing _me. I HATE IT. I want to turn myself in, just so I can maybe see you before being tossed into Azkaban. But I can't. I've got to keep going. I've gotten this far, haven't I? Just remember, I miss you and I never stop thinking about you. Keep on living. I love you._

_Draco_

Hermione's bottom lip began to quiver. Why would he send this to her? Just to remind her about how much she missed him? As if she needed reminding. But still, it was incredibly wonderful to hear from him. To know that he was alright. Hermione fastened the necklace around her neck, secretly telling herself that she would never take it off. Luckily, Hannah and Ron were too involved with themselves to question the package or the necklace that Hermione had received. Opening the Daily Prophet, Hermione propped it up against her goblet of orange juice, hiding her face from everybody so that they would not see the tears flowing down it. She was not intending to read it, but a certain article caught her eye. She gasped.

_MALFOY CAUGHT AND SENT TO AZKABAN_

_Draco Malfoy, recent murderer of William Tompkins, was found and arrested last night in a small town north of London. Malfoy was spotted by a muggle, who immediately reported this convict, and the Ministry of Magic were able to track him straight away. Draco Malfoy, son of deceased Death Eater Lucius Malfoy, fled from the Ministry only months before on Christmas Day. He fled because he had taken away the life of young wizard William Tompkins, by use of the Unforgivable Curse, Avada Kadavra. "We should have been expecting something like this." Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge said last night after delivering Malfoy personally to Azkaban. "Lucius Malfoy was a bad egg. Of course his son would be too. I'm just happy that he is safely under the watch of the Dementor's now. There is no more need to fear." Draco Malfoy will be serving a life-sentence in Azkaban, which is exactly where he belongs. _

Hermione read and reread the article, refusing to believe it. Draco couldn't have been caught! He was Draco Malfoy! And he would have only written that letter to her days before. How could he be fine one day, and then caught the next? And why was he near London? He had been gone for almost two months. Surely he would have been far from London. And now he was in Azkaban. At that very moment, Draco Malfoy was sitting in a cold, stone Azkaban cell, freezing his ass off and being guarded by the horrifying, gruesome Dementor's. Why was this happening?

…………………………………….

The Night Before

The sound of rain plummeting into the ocean and waves crashing against enormous rocks banged against his eardrums, but the sound did not bother him at the moment. All he wanted to do was to focus his eyes. His vision was hazy and unclear, making it very frustrating. Slowly, his eyes came back into focus. He suddenly realized that he had been put into the full-body bind and been knocked unconscious. Awaking in a boat in the middle of the ocean with rain pounding against your face was definitely not the best way to wake. He wanted to shield his face against the buckets of rain, but his arms would not move. This was most definitely not the kind of position that Draco Malfoy should ever be in. But he was. So, for what felt like forever, he took to looking up into the dark, starry sky, watching the individual drops of rain attack him as a union. Suddenly, the boat stopped rowing. They must have hit shore. For the first time in what felt like hours, Draco could see something other than the vast, open sky. A tall building loomed over him, looking frightening and haunted. Draco had seen that building in pictures. That same dark, ominous structure. Azkaban.

"Get him out!" A distant voice hollered over the deafening rain.

Suddenly, a set of strong, muscular arms hauled Draco up and out of the boat. A sudden flash of lightening illuminated the otherwise silhouetted face of Draco's retriever. Kingsley Shacklebolt. Draco remembered Hermione telling him about this man; they had been on friendly terms with each other. Hermione. The name sent a brick plummeting in Draco's stomach. He had sent her a letter by owl only a couple of days before, when everything had been alright. And then what happened? He had been on his way to see her. How could he abandon her on Valentine's Day? He just had to see her. But then a beam of red light flashed in Draco's eyes and he fell unconscious, only to awake freezing cold in a wooden boat, being carried off to Azkaban where he would spent the rest of his life.

A spell had been cast on Draco to undo the body-bind charm. Kingsley Shacklebolt shoved Draco forward. _Run, _Draco told himself. _Just run. _But to where? Draco felt weak enough as it was. And slowly looking around, he could see that there was nowhere to run to. It was just this tiny island with a towering, daunting building propped right in the center.

"Hello, Mr Malfoy." A voice greeted menacingly.

Draco looked up and into the eyes of Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic. "Hello, _Minister._" Draco smirked, adding a sarcastic stress on 'minister'.

Fudge glared disapprovingly at Draco, but continued. "Do you know where you are?"

Draco nodded. "Of course."

"Well, this is where you will be the rest of your life. You will have no trial. You have used an Unforgivable Curse on a fellow wizard, and for that you have a life-sentence in Azkaban. Do you understand?" Fudge demanded.

"Bite me." Draco replied bitterly, spitting directly into Fudge's face.

"You arrogant, disrespectful little-" Fudge began, outraged. Then, "Take him away, _now!_"

Draco smirked once more before being shoved again by Kingsley. He was jostled all the way up to the front doors of the building, where two Dementor's stood waiting hungrily for their next victim.

"He's all yours." Kingsley said in a deep, cold voice. He didn't care one bit about Draco. About the fact that from this moment on, Draco's life would be ruined forever. He didn't care about the fact that Draco would never see Hermione again. Ever.

_I want the proposal to blow her away. It will be unexpected and incredibly romantic. She won't know what hit her. _

Both Dementor's placed a scaly, rotting hand on Draco's shoulders, leading him inside. They did not need to tighten their grasp. Draco was already weak enough, and the happiness being sucked out of him by the Dementor's was beginning to take its toll.

_The wedding will be exactly how she wants. Outdoors on a small hilltop, with family and close friends surrounding us. She'll look beautiful. Just beautiful. Like she always does. _

Every Azkaban cell that the Dementor's and Draco passed was filled with silent men and women, each with white faces and blank expressions that only Azkaban can do to you. Draco noticed that many of them were Death Eaters. Old family friends. But none were his age. None were only seventeen years old.

_We'll have three children. Two girls and a boy. The girls will both look as beautiful as she does, and the boy will follow in my footsteps and lead a strong, wonderful life, just like his mother's and mine. _

The Dementor's unlocked a cell, sucking in the last of Draco's happiness as they forced him inside and locked the cell behind him. Instinctively, Draco reached for his wand in his back pocket. It was gone. They must have taken it. Draco sighed and fell into the large pile of hay in one corner of the tiny, stone cell.

_And we'll live happily together forever and ever. Hermione and I and our three children. Forever and ever. One day, it will happen…_

The cell door slammed shut, locking Draco in for what would be an eternity.


	30. An Unwanted Return

An Unwanted Return

"The fucker got caught!" Blaise exclaimed, racing over to the Gryffindor table and thrashing the Daily Prophet on top of Hermione's already opened one. Blaise's Daily Prophet was not opened yet, and Hermione noticed that Draco was on the front page. It was actually him, looking frail and tired as he descended from a boat onto the island of Azkaban, accompanied by Kingsley Shacklebolt. Hermione picked up Blaise's Daily Prophet and gazed at the picture of Draco, all time suddenly coming to an abrupt halt. Of course, time can't be put on halt for too long when Blaise is around. Then who would be left to pay attention to him?

Blaise snatched the newspaper from Hermione's grip. "Did you hear me, Granger? He got caught! And I'd have thought that he would have been more careful. Right outside of London, for heaven's sake! Probably coming to see you. What a stupid git. I expected much better of him."

Ron and Hannah finally looked up. Ron frowned. "Go fuck yourself, Zabini." He said, not very threateningly.

"How about I fuck your girlfriend instead?" Blaise said, flickering his tongue like a snake at Hannah. Hannah looked as though she wanted to be sick.

Ron stood up abruptly. "If you ever-"

Hannah put a hand on Ron's shoulder, causing him to stop in mid-sentence. Ron sat back down, glaring at Blaise.

Blaise laughed. "That's what I thought."

Blaise turned to leave, but before he could take a step away from the Gryffindor table, his pants suddenly fell mysteriously to his ankles, revealing bright, yellow boxers patterned with winking, grinning happy faces. Blaise's jaw dropped in horror as everyone in the Great Hall turned to look. Laughter slowly began to echo through the Hall, and a few seconds later once everyone was staring, it was full-fledged roars of mirth from each and every student in the Great Hall, including the Slytherins. A horrified Blaise made to dash out of the Great Hall, but before he could make it past the Ravenclaw table, his pants got the better of him and tripped him, causing him to fall to the floor. The roaring of laughter intensified, and Blaise scurried out of the Great Hall on hands and knees, his face red as a beet.

Ron was nearly in tears, clutching his stomach because he was laughing so hard. Hannah giggled, giving Hermione a "you-shouldn't-have-done-that" look. But Hermione couldn't pass up such an opportunity. What's a witch without her magic?

……………………………………..

Hermione had pinned the picture of Draco from the Daily Prophet on her wall beside her calendar. Even when he was two seconds away from a cell in Azkaban, he still looked like the sexiest man alive. Hermione sighed. He probably _was _on his way to see her. That was why he was near London. He had risked getting caught just to see her. And he did. Because of Hermione, Draco was now in a cell in Azkaban.

"Yo, Hermione!" Ron cried from the common room. "Professor Dumbledore to see you!"

Hermione snapped out of her depression, taking one last look at Draco's angelic face before leaving her bedroom and emerging into the Great Hall, where Ron and Hannah sat doing homework and Dumbledore stood tall, the top of his pointed hat almost touching the ceiling.

"Hello, Professor." Hermione greeted. "Happy Valentine's Day."

Dumbledore grinned. "Yes, Happy Valentine's Day to you, too. Mr Weasley, Miss Abbott, would you two mind giving Miss Granger and I a moment alone?"

"Of course!" Ron said, nodding enthusiastically. He and Hannah rose and left the common room, hand-in-hand.

Hermione smiled after them, then looked up into Dumbledore's pale, blue eyes, wondering what on earth he could possibly want. "Yes, Professor?" She asked, after Dumbledore said nothing.

"There is someone in my office requesting to speak with you." Dumbledore said, not looking too thrilled. "He is not very happy, either."

"Who is it?" Hermione asked, confused.

"The Minister for Magic." Dumbledore answered. "Cornelius Fudge."

Hermione looked dumbfounded. "Why on earth does he wish to speak with me? Does this have to do with Draco?"

"It has nothing to do with Draco." Dumbledore answered. "Shall we go and see him?"

Hermione nodded, still confused. What did the Minister for Magic want with _her _if it did not have to do with Draco? She scanned through the list in her head of everything that the Minster could want, but none of the options seemed likely. Hermione was bewildered when Dumbledore came to a sudden halt outside of the stone gargoyle guarding his office. He muttered the password to get through. Hermione then followed him onto a spiral stone staircase. The staircase slowly moved upwards and stopped once it reached a polished, oak door. They stepped off together, and Dumbledore pushed the door open into his office.

Cornelius Fudge, holding his green bowler hat, stood in the center of the office, tapping his foot impatiently. He really _did_ look unhappy about something. But _what?_

"Thank you, Dumbledore." Fudge said. "Do you mind if we speak in private?"

"Certainly." Dumbledore said, politely. "I have an errand to run as it is. I shall return in fifteen minutes time." And with that, he turned and left his office. Hermione stared at Fudge, not even aware that she was doing so.

"Well, good evening, Miss Granger." Fudge said, shortly. "I have a matter that I would like to discuss with you."

"What would that be?" Hermione asked, continuing to stare at him.

"This house-elves nonsense." Fudge answered, surveying Hermione to see her reaction.

"What?" Hermione asked, both stunned and baffled at the same time. "You came all the way to Hogwarts to discuss house-elves?"

"Precisely." Fudge said. "I've gotten word about what you are attempting to do. Trying to give house-elves their freedom. Preposterous! Miss Granger, house-elves serve a purpose in the magical world. That purpose is to serve wizards. It's as simple as that."

"It is not!" Hermione cried. "House-elves have feelings, too, just like we do! They don't deserve what they're being forced to do!"

"They enjoy what they do!" Fudge countered.

"That's just because they haven't experienced what freedom is like!" Hermione opposed. "They don't know what its like to have wages or to work an actual job that doesn't include slaving away for somebody else!"

"They don't need to! You're idea and your constant need for attention has got to stop, young lady. I will not have you diffusing your ridiculous house-elf freedom hodgepodge into the magical world!" Fudge spat.

"It is not hodgepodge." Hermione whispered, glaring at the Minister. She then spoke in a calm, steady voice. "I _will _continue this until I get what I want. I am making a stand for Magical Creatures who obviously cannot do it themselves. If you want to fight me against it, fine. But there is absolutely nowhere in the Ministry of Magic Guide that says protesting for Magical Creatures is illegal, so I don't know what kind of a defense you'll have."

"This will never make it to the Daily Prophet." Fudge warned. "You mark my words, the magical community will _not _hear of it. They don't _want _to. To them, you'll be a lunatic who's gone mad over the loss of her crazy, convict boyfriend. And if that's what I've got to do to make sure that your ridiculous protest does not come out, so be it. Good day, Miss Granger."

Hermione's jaw dropped in disbelief as she watched Fudge breeze past her and exit Dumbledore's office. What a _prick! _How did he hear about it, anyway? Not that it mattered. And who cares if the magical world thinks that she's crazy? They can all go fuck themselves if that's the case. But how _dare _Fudge bring up Draco! The nerve of him! If anything, Fudge's little 'speech' only urged Hermione to want to free the house-elves more than ever!

"Miss Granger, are you alright?" Dumbledore asked as he stepped into his office. Hermione had plopped herself down into one of the comfy armchairs, not even realizing that she had done so.

"The Minister just threatened me!" Hermione exclaimed, outraged. She then spilled the entire story to Dumbledore. Every last word that Fudge had said to her. Dumbledore listened patiently, nodding here and there to show that he understood.

Once Hermione finished, Dumbledore shook his head. "There is nothing erroneous with what you're doing, Hermione." He said. "But you are going about this all wrong. If you want to free the house-elves, the first thing you need is their consent. You need to persuade them to want the same thing that you do. If you need any help, feel free to ask me. I'm willing to help the house-elves if that is what they want."

Hermione smiled gratefully. "Maybe you can help…"

…………………………………..

A week after Hermione's encounter with Fudge, she formed somewhat of a treaty. This treaty included herself, Dumbledore, Ron, Hannah, Neville, Seamus, Dean, Lavender, and Parvati. The nine of them made their way down to the kitchens, prepared to give the presentation of their lives. They used pictures, graphs, symbols, and catchy phrases to gain the attention of the house-elves. Their biggest weapon was, of course, Dumbledore. The house-elves would not dare refuse to listen to what the Headmaster would have to say, nor would they argue with him about it. Dumbledore, with the help of the S.P.E.W. team, managed to get their point across about all of the wonderful things that freedom can do for the house-elves. And the amazing thing was, they seemed to be listening. They did not agree to anything, but they _did _agree to take everything that was said into consideration. Hermione felt so happy that her heart was near the point of bursting. She had made a small breakthrough! Take that, Fudge!

"I'm going to bed." Ron yawned, shutting his notebook for the night. "Why would I take Divination again? Seriously, what is _wrong _with me? It's got to be the most stupid subject ever."

"I tried to tell you in our third year." Hermione shrugged. "But you wouldn't listen to me."

"Yeah, well hit me next time. Maybe it will get through." Ron suggested.

Hannah slugged Ron in the arm.

"What was that for?" Ron exclaimed, rubbing his arm. The bruise that Hannah had left from the week before was just starting to fade, too. Ron reckoned it would only be a few minutes before the new one began to appear.

"You said to hit you." Hannah replied, innocently.

"Next time I make a stupid decision!" Ron cried, still rubbing his arm. "Not now!"

"Well, not finishing your homework is a stupid decision." Hannah said, indicating Ron's closed and unfinished notebook.

"Very true." Hermione agreed, giggling at Ron's losing battle.

Ron glared at Hannah, then his face cracked into an unexpected grin as he kissed her on the cheek. "Good night, love muffin."

Hannah giggled. "Wait! I'm coming too! Good night, Hermione."

"Nitey night." Hermione said, internally sighing. Ron and Hannah were so happy. It was cute, it really was, but still… Hermione could not stop thinking about how times would be if Draco were around. Would Draco and Ron put the past behind them enough to allow the four of them to hang out? Hermione smiled to herself. Probably not. But it would have been worth the shot. That is, if Draco were around. But he wasn't.

Hermione yawned. Apparently, she was tired too. But she had to finish her Potions homework. Snape would be livid if she didn't. Then again, Snape was always livid. But still. Hermione didn't need to make him any grumpier than he usually was. So, she stared down at the question that she had needed to copy down for homework. _Explain why Shredded skin of a Boomslang is an essential ingredient in the Polyjuice Potion. _Hermione racked her brain. She should know this. She had concocted a Polyjuice Potion in her second year. But nothing was coming to mind. Why _was _Shredded skin of a Boomslang an essential ingredient in a Polyjuice Potion? Hermione yawned again. She closed her eyes, trying to envision the potion and the ingredient. And _still _nothing was coming up. Perhaps she was just too tired. Yes, that would explain it…

Hermione suddenly slipped into an odd dream. She was at her own wedding, standing at the alter. Except she was in a tuxedo, not a gorgeous white dress. Then suddenly, a man came walking down the aisle. A man in a beautiful, white wedding dress. _Strange. _His veil was drawn up over his face, covering his profile. He walked slowly towards Hermione, carrying a bouquet of flowers. After what felt like hours, he made it up to the altar. Hermione smiled, then reached to uncover the man's face. However, it was not Draco like she had thought. There were round green eyes the size of tennis balls, though…

"Friend of Harry Potter!" A voice squealed.

Hermione's eyes snapped open, only to be greeted by Dobby the house-elf's large, green ones. She withdrew her head immediately, then yawned and stretched with no recollection of her strange dream. She glanced out of the window; it was still dark. "Hello, Dobby." She said in the middle of a yawn. "What are you doing here?"

"Dobby's come to tell Miss good news!" Dobby cried, excitedly.

"What is it?" Hermione asked.

"The house-elves are thinking, Miss! About your idea! Dobby tries to tell them how wonderful it is! For once, they are listening! Dobby's not so stupid, now. They like Dobby's socks! Soon, all house-elves will be free!"

Hermione's face cracked into a grin. "That's excellent, Dobby! Just incredible! I knew Dumbledore would have influence!"

"The Headmaster is wonderful!" Dobby exclaimed. "Great man, he is. Always tries to give Dobby more than he wants. Dobby doesn't accept too much, of course. Dobby is still a loyal house-elf. What if Dobby takes so much pay from the Headmaster that the Headmaster does not have enough pay for anything for himself?" Dobby asked. He shuddered at the thought.

Hermione giggled. "I'm sure that won't happen, Dobby. Thank you for letting me know, though. At this rate, it may be possible that sometime in the future house-elves can work anywhere they want! You might be able to become Minister for Magic one day, Dobby."

Dobby's huge, green eyes widened in disbelief. "Dobby, Minister for Magic?" He laughed. "Dobby would not want such a place. No, Dobby enjoys working for others. And getting his pay."

Hermione yawned once more. "I should get going back to sleep in my room. Seriously, thank you so much, Dobby. I'll be sure to inform you about any updates in S.P.E.W. You'll be the first to know."

"Dobby is honored, Miss!" Dobby cried. "Sleep well! Will it be okay if Dobby visits another time?"

"Of course!" Hermione exclaimed. "Anytime."

Dobby's face cracked into a toothy, excited smile before leaving the dormitory, still jumpy at the thought of causing Dumbledore to be left penniless because of Dobby's own wages.

……………………………………….

"We have consent!" Hermione exclaimed, running up to Dumbledore at the staff table in the Great Hall with Ron and Hannah in her wake. She was waving a piece of parchment. "Every house-elf in the kitchens except for Winky signed it! They're signatures aren't completely legible, but that's fine. They're still signatures."

Dumbledore smiled. "And you, Mr Weasley, believed that we could never sway the house-elves decision."

Ron grinned sheepishly, while Hannah giggled at him.

"Professor, does this mean that we can begin fundraising for an actual campaign?" Hermione asked, eagerly.

"A campaign?" Ron moaned. "Come on, Hermione!"

Hermione ignored him, still focusing her attention on Dumbledore. "I figured we could get premises at Diagon Alley. An actual building, though. No little booth like Fred and George's."

"Hey!" Ron exclaimed, looking offended. "Their booth is awesome! And their canary creams are always selling out, thank you very much."

"Oh, Ron, you know what I mean." Hermione said, rolling her eyes. "It has to look professional. None of us knows what we want to do after Hogwarts anyways, right?"

Ron and Hannah nodded, though neither looked half as eager as Hermione about jumping into the S.P.E.W. business once they graduated Hogwarts.

"Brilliant!" Hermione cried. "This is going to be so amazing! Excuse me, I need to contact the Daily Prophet about available premises! See you!"

Hermione raced off down the steps leading up to the staff table and out the Great Hall door so quickly that Blaise Zabini did not even notice her fly by.

"That girl has gone bonkers, I'm telling you." Ron said, shaking his head disbelievingly.

……………………………….

Hermione made a quick pit stop at her dormitory, only to write a brief letter to the Daily Prophet requesting a building in Diagon Alley. She then rolled up the piece of parchment and darted to the Owlery. Spotting a gorgeous tanned owl, Hermione called it down and began tying the letter to its leg. She then watched it take off into the setting sun, sighing at the thought of how wonderful it would be to just take off like that. Suddenly, another owl came flying towards the Owlery window. It passed Hermione's tanned owl and continued to fly directly towards her. Surely it couldn't be for her. Hermione hardly ever received mail, except for Draco's letter on Valentines Day. But surprisingly, the letter _was _for her. The now-distinguishable brown barn owl landed on a low branch right in front of Hermione, so that it was easy for her to untie the letter from its leg. Hermione patted its head for a few moments until it lifted its wings and took off, not even wanting a drink of water as a reward for its long flight. Hermione was not too worried about the owl, though. All she wanted to know was who the letter was from. So, she carefully unraveled it and read the scrawled, somewhat-familiar handwriting, growing more and more disgusted with every word that she read.

_Yo Hermione,_

_Long time no talk, eh? I have a surprise for you, babe. You'll be pleased, I can guarantee you that. The big boys coming home. Yup, that's me. Turns out Durmstrang's sick of me or something. Just because I threw a cherry bomb in the toilet while the headmaster was using the bathroom. They have no sense of discipline anymore, honestly. Like I'm depressed or something because they expelled me. Ha! As if. But now I get to see you, sexy. Looking forward to it. Later._

_Sexiest Guy Alive_

"Oh this is great." Hermione said, sarcastically. "Just _fucking _great!"

"Yeah, I thought you'd think so."

Hermione shut her eyes, praying to god that she was just having some sort of horrible, terrible nightmare. But Hermione's entire life was a nightmare. Why should things start working out for her now? She opened her eyes, then turned around, dreading what she would come face-to-face with. His hair was the same. The blond highlights stood out so much from the natural brown, but that was what made him so sexy. And yes, he still was sexy. As much of a jerk as he was, he was still sexy. The way he just stood there in the doorframe, his arm above his head resting on the frame with the other hand on his hip. But he was a jerk. Bottom line.

"Well, well, well." Hermione said, piercing him with a glare of disgust. "If it isn't Acelio McGonagall."


	31. Many Encounters, None Pleasant

Many Encounters, None Pleasant

"Happy to see me, babe?" Ace asked, smirking from his place in the doorframe.

"Do I _look_ happy to see you?" Hermione replied, rhetorically. "What the hell are you doing here, Ace?"

"Wow, what's with the hostility?" Ace asked, feigning surprise. "And here I thought that you would be thrilled to see me."

"What _ever _possessed you to think that?" Hermione retorted, still shooting daggers at Ace's smug, arrogant self.

"Just the fact that I remember you being extremely taken with me." Ace replied, cockily. "I can't believe that one little thing could make you change you're opinion of me so drastically."

"One little thing?" Hermione asked, her voice rising. "ONE LITTLE THING! You fucking spiked my drinks so that you could have _sex _with me, Ace! That was some lying, deceitful, manipulative shit you tried to pull off! What is _wrong _with you?"

Ace smirked as though what he had done was actually funny. "You had fun that night, Granger. Just admit it. If you hadn't gotten drunk then the night would have been a total bore for you. And if I can recall, you _wanted _to sleep with me."

Hermione's eyes widened in disbelief. "I was _drunk! _By YOU! Are you that stupid that you honestly believed I wouldn't be the least bit angry? If Draco weren't there, I don't know what I would have-" Hermione suddenly went quiet. Draco. He had saved her from making the biggest mistake of her life that night. How ironic was it that she would end up having sex with him instead only a few months later?

"Draco, eh? Yeah, I read about him." Ace said.

Hermione stayed quiet. Ace knew. Was that why he was here? To rub it in?

"I have to go." Hermione suddenly said, staring longingly at the exit.

"But wait!" Ace cried, now standing straight so that he could block the doorframe. "Don't you want to hear what I read? It's really interesting, actually. Draco Malfoy, the dude who apparently 'saved' you, seems to have _killed _a guy. Have you heard? How silly of me, of course you have! You were in the article!"

"Ace, move out of my way." Hermione said, her voice calm and steady and yet still not having any impact on Ace.

"Yeah, you were mentioned. Bit of a love triangle there, eh? You, Malfoy, and the dead guy. So you were actually dating Malfoy? I thought that after me you would have had at least _some _taste." He grinned for a moment before continuing. Hermione glared at him with disgust. "So is the story true, then? Malfoy barges in on you and that guy and then out of jealousy he kills the guy?"

"You know absolutely _nothing._" Hermione said, angrily.

"I'm kind of insulted, really." Ace continued, faking a hurt expression. "You won't have sex with me, but you'll fuck two other guys a few months later. Was I not good enough for you?" He smirked, his expression clearly saying that he not being good enough for her certainly couldn't be the reason.

"Who the hell are you to presume that I was sleeping with Draco and Will?" Hermione cried, now officially pissed off. "For your information, I never once slept with Will!"

"Ah." Ace said, grinning. "Okay. Question answered. Thanks."

_What is wrong with you?_ Hermione scolded herself. _Why wouldn't you say that you didn't sleep with Will _and _Draco? _But secretly, Hermione thought that she might know the answer. Maybe she _wanted _Ace to know that she was no longer a virgin. Strange.

"Fuck you. I'm leaving." Hermione said, heading for the exit.

Ace placed both hands on Hermione's shoulders to stop her from leaving. Stupidly, Hermione did not fight him.

"I still haven't said why I'm here." Ace pointed out, looking into Hermione's deep, chocolate brown eyes.

"And I'm assuming you're going to tell me." Hermione replied. "And you can do so _after _you remove your hands from me."

Ace rolled his eyes, grinning as he lowered his hands and folded them across his chest, leaning back onto the doorframe. "Well, partially it's because I got expelled from Durmstrang."

"How shocking." Hermione replied with absolutely no enthusiasm.

"I know. Who'd have known that putting a couple cherry bombs in some of the toilets while the Headmaster was sitting in the next stall would have made him so angry? It was all in good fun." Ace smiled, most likely reminiscing about the moment that the cherry bomb exploded and caused his Headmaster to fly up with the stream of water like a cork flying off of a shaken wine bottle.

"Yeah, who'd have thought?" Hermione replied, sarcastically. "Does McGonagall know that you're back?"

"Nope." Ace replied, casually. "I'm sure she'll be as thrilled to see me as you are."

"I'm sure." Hermione answered. "Why would you come here of all places?"

"Well, I had a proposition for you." Ace said, grinning.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to sleep with you, Ace! Not now, not ever. Got it?"

"Don't flatter yourself, babe." Ace said, still smiling. "That wasn't my proposal. Although I wouldn't decline it if that's what you want."

"I'm going to leave in about five seconds if you don't get on with it." Hermione said, shortly.

"Chill, Hermione. It has to do with your new favorite subject. _Spew._"

"What is wrong with you people?" Hermione exclaimed. "It's SPEW! S-P-E-W! It's not that difficult! And where the hell did you hear about it?"

"I have my sources. The point is, I can tell that you're obviously serious about it."

"Uh, you think?" Hermione replied sarcastically.

"Don't get testy with me Granger, or you won't get what I have to offer."

"What a pity."

"Anyway, I did hear about it, and I thought, 'Damn, that girl is persistent.' But then it came to me: how will she be able to afford such a thing? If you're _that _serious about it, then you'll obviously need gold. Finance, my dear. The business world is all about finance. And that is why I'm here."

"You're going to pull some gold out of your ass, then?" Hermione asked, feigning a surprised expression.

"Even better. I'm going to pull some gold out of my vault. Just for you, babe." Ace smirked.

"You said it yourself, Ace. This is business. Ten galleons won't get us too far, I'm sorry to tell you."

"Ten galleons? Try six hundred." Ace replied, looking superior.

Hermione's jaw dropped. She quickly covered up her shock, though. "Whatever, Ace. If you don't mind, I really must-"

"I'm serious." Ace said, uncrossing his arms and striding across the Owlery to a vacant chair. "My dad is the new Headmaster at Durmstrang. You'd be surprised at how much gold Headmaster's actually make."

"Then that means you-"

"Yup. Cherry-bombed my Pop. He's given me one too many chances at that school, and I think the whole 'cherry-bomb incident' was the last straw. He expelled me and kicked me out of the house. Luckily, he wasn't too heartless. He gave me a bit of gold to keep me on my feet for awhile. But I figured that if I finance you, I'd be getting profit, too."

"And how did you figure that?" Hermione asked, skeptically.

"I'd want a job, of course." Ace replied, slickly.

"Hell no!" Hermione immediately answered. "No fucking way in hell. Not happening. Nope. Thank you very much for your time Ace, but no. We'll do fine without you and your stupid gold. Good day." Turning to leave, Hermione marched towards the door.

"Yo, Hermione?" Ace called after her, still sitting in his chair with his feet up on a tree stump.

Sighing, Hermione turned around, staring expectantly at Ace.

"Send me an owl if you change your mind. I think I'll be sticking around."

Glaring at him, Hermione replied, "Don't worry, Acelio. I won't."

Watching her leave, Ace smirked. "We'll see about that."

……………………………………….

"Can you _believe _him?" Hermione exclaimed, raving about Ace to Hannah and Ginny, who both sat in the Head Boy and Girl dormitory listening intently to Hermione's story.

"I can't believe he's back!" Ginny cried. "After what he did to you, I'm surprised he'd even show his face again!"

"I know!" Hannah agreed, shooting Hermione sympathetic glances.

"McGonagall and Dumbledore won't let him stay, though. They can't. They banned him from here after the incident." Ginny continued, trying to lift Hermione's spirits.

"It was such a wonderful thing that Draco was there." Hannah said. "Imagine if he hadn't been-" She suddenly fell silent at the look on Hermione's face.

"So, you're definitely not going to take the money?" Ginny said, changing the subject.

Hermione looked revolted. "What, did you expect me to even consider it?"

"It's just that you're obviously dead-set for this SPEW idea, right? If you want to make an actual 'business' out of it, you need premises, material, all of that stuff. You can't do it with the change in your back pocket, you know." Ginny pointed out.

Hermione sighed. "I know. But I refuse to accept money from that scumbag and give him a position. Lord knows he would probably want something absurd like President or CEO."

Hannah giggled. "Yeah, he probably would."

"Just don't tell Ron about Ace, okay? He'd flip. You know him. He hated Ace. Harry did, too. We don't need either one of them freaking out because Ace is back." Hermione instructed.

Hannah and Ginny nodded enthusiastically. "Don't worry. The only way that Ron will find out that Ace is back is if they come face to face, and I highly doubt that will happen." Hannah said.

Hermione giggled. "Oh god, imagine if they did?"

Ginny laughed as well. "That wouldn't be very good, would it?"

………………………………….

"Shit, I'm late!" Ron cried to no one in particular as he raced out of his dormitory the next morning. Hermione and Hannah were already gone; Hannah had probably wanted to give Ron a few extra minutes in bed, and then took off with Hermione, leaving Ron dead as a log in his comfortable, four-poster bed.

Ron forced his Hogwarts robes on as he raced out of the dormitory and towards the huge, moving staircase that led up to the North Tower, where the rest of his Divination classmates currently resided. However, in Ron's rush to get to class, he did not even notice the person going down the same staircase that he was going up.

_CRASH!_

Ron ran straight into the tall, built figure, bouncing off of him like a ping pong ball hitting a racket. He fell backwards, all the way to the bottom of the staircases. His Divination books were all sprawled out around him, and a considerably large bruise was already beginning to form on his elbow as he lay on his back on the ground, looking up at the high, distant ceiling. Suddenly, the figure whom he had run into loomed over him, laughing. The boy's head blocked out the light, causing his face to become silhouetted, but Ron would notice that flicker of brown and blond hair anywhere. It was Ace.

"Watch where you're going, punk." Ace said, still laughing at Ron.

"You!" Ron cried, immediately standing up and instantly forgetting about his pained elbow. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

"That, little buddy, is none of your business." Ace said, turning to walk away.

"You wait one moment!" Ron exclaimed, still in disbelief that Acelio McGonagall had the nerve to stand there before him, acting as though nothing had happened. He suddenly withdrew his wand, pointing it directly at Ace. "You deserve to be cursed to hell for what you tried to do to Hermione. Have you no shame? Honestly, you're such a disgusting, vile-"

"Spare me the chat, tiger." Ace replied, obviously intending to piss Ron off by talking to Ron as though he were ten. "It's pretty pathetic that you seem angrier about this then our dear Hermione. She didn't even pull out her wand."

"You've seen Hermione?" Ron asked, shocked. Without thinking, he lowered his wand.

Taking advantage of Ron's hesitance, Ace quickly withdrew his own wand and aimed it at Ron, shouting, "_Uforia!_"

With a sudden jerk, Ron's hands were instantly bound together up over his head, and he was lifted into the air about two feet off the ground.

Ace laughed once more, clutching his stomach as he once again turned to leave, this time without any interruption.

"I'll get you, McGonagall!" Ron cried from his awkward position in the air. "You wait! You'll wish that the day never came when you messed with Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley!"

……………………………

That evening, Hermione sat in a secluded corner in the library, going over the entire sheaf of parchment that had piled up since the beginning of SPEW. She sighed, staring at all of the numbers helplessly. One number stood out most vividly; premises in Diagon Alley, costing roughly three hundred and fifty galleons. This was not just a booth, however, like Fred and George's joke shop. This was an actual building, smaller than Gringotts but larger than _Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions. _It was just brilliant: large enough to accommodate Hermione, Ron, Hannah, Ginny, Dean, Seamus, Neville, and anyone else who might have decided to work for SPEW. It was a business building, and it would have been _perfect. _If only Hermione had the money for it. She sighed once more. Three hundred and fifty galleons. Ace had six hundred. That would be plenty for the building plus a lot of gold leftover for any other expenses that they would probably need. _No! _Hermione told herself. _Stop thinking about it! You're not using Ace's gold, and that's final. _But all of the ideas that Hermione had streaming through her head would certainly not have come cheap. House-elf homes, clothing, communities… the possibilities were endless. The gold, however, was not. Shaking her head, she sighed for the third and final time. It wouldn't hurt to contact Ace, just to see what he had in mind. Closing her eyes, she silently reached for a piece of parchment and a quill, prepared to write a short, brief letter.

_Ace, _

_Perhaps we can discuss you're proposal. I want to see what you have in mind. Meet me at the Three Broomsticks at noon on the Hogsmeade visit coming up this weekend. I'll see you there._

_Hermione_

………………………………….

"Oh come on, Aunt Minerva!" Ace cried, staring defeat in the eye. "It did not go down the way they all said it did! No one even bothered to listen to my rendition of what happened!"

"Then what did happen, Acelio?" Professor McGonagall asked sharply.

"I just wanted to have a little fun." Ace replied, quietly. "It was getting boring, hanging out with a bunch of kids. It was all in good fun, honest!"

"Even so, you caused more trouble than you can imagine that evening, Acelio." McGonagall said. "And I just cannot have you returning to the school. I apologize, but Professor Dumbledore will not agree. I shall get you residence somewhere close by until you can get settled in. Until then, please do not come into Hogwarts and please stay away from Hermione Granger."

Ace looked down at the ground, wishing that he could whine and complain like a ten-year-old until he got his way. But he didn't. Professor McGonagall looked at him sympathetically, then strode across the room and took her nephew into a tight embrace.

"Don't you worry, Acelio. Everything will work out in the end, I promise." McGonagall said, holding Ace tightly.

Ace smirked over McGonagall's shoulder. _You're damn right it will. _


	32. Signed, Sealed, Delivered

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

"Last chance, Hermione." Hannah warned. "Are you absolutely, positively, one hundred percent sure that you want to do this?"

Hermione drew in a deep breath and closed her eyes, bracing herself for her own answer. "Yes, I'm positive." She answered, still sounding slightly unsure. "I mean, it's just a meeting, right? It's not like I'm accepting his offer. I'm just curious is all."

Hannah pursed her lips but said nothing. She continued to watch Hermione pace around the common room, thinking that Hermione probably did not even notice that she was doing so. Sadly, they were not in Ron's company. He had completely blasted Hermione for not telling him about Ace, even though Hermione tried to explain that she had only found out that he was back at Hogwarts the day before he did. Ron was still extremely angry, though. He was most likely brooding in his bedroom, thinking up creative, painful ways to make sure that Ace could never return to Hogwarts. Thankfully, he was still on speaking terms with Hermione. Hermione, on the other hand, was not too worried about their friendship at that moment. The day of the Hogsmeade weekend had arrived, and everyone was excited and raring to go. Except for Hermione, however. She was still debating whether or not she wanted to actually keep her end of the deal and show up at the Three Broomsticks; after all, she probably wouldn't take the money anyway. What was the point of going?

"Well, let's just hope that what he has to say is crap and that it won't entice you any more than it already seems to have." Hannah said.

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, pretending to read her Arithmancy book. "I'm not at all enticed."

Hannah raised an eyebrow, clearly saying _whatever. _

"Okay fine, maybe I'm a _little_ enticed. But who wouldn't be? Its six hundred dollars, Hannah. That's a lot of money." Hermione pointed out.

"True." Hannah sighed. "Just remember the kind of person Ace is, though. Is the money worth making you work with someone who you despise?"

Hermione thought about that, but before she could answer, Ron appeared in the common room. Hannah arose immediately and raced over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him into a deep, sensual kiss.

"Wow!" Ron cried as they pulled apart. "What was that for?"

"To make sure that you're in a good mood for the Hogsmeade trip." Hannah said in a hopeful tone.

Ron laughed. "Well, mission accomplished. You just totally lifted my mood. Are you both ready to go?"

Hermione sighed, still indecisive. "Yup, we're ready. Let's go."

…………………………………….

_What is wrong with me? Why am I here? I _hate _Ace. Hate him. He's the biggest prick in the universe. Every time I look at him, I think of Draco. Draco hates him, too. He wouldn't be happy at all if he knew that I'm planning on doing this. But it's business! Total, complete, 100 business! Nothing at all to do with the past and everything to do with the future. The future of SPEW. I just need to concentrate on that. But… Draco would still be pissed. No matter which way the top spins, Draco would not like this at all. I shouldn't be here. I can find some other method of finance. I have to. _

Standing outside of the Three Broomsticks,Hermione finally made up her mind. Neither Draco nor herself liked Ace, and having to be around him all the time in the SPEW business would just be horrific and almost not worth the money that Ace would be giving her. _Almost, _Hermione thought. _No! I'm not doing this. I'm leaving. _Turning to leave, Hermione immediately bumped into a person on their way into the Three Broomsticks. Her wand dropped out of her pocket onto the cold, stone floor.

Bending over to pick it up, Hermione apologized repeatedly to the stranger. "I'm so, _so_ sorry! I wasn't watching where I was-" Stuffing her wand into her pocket and standing back up straight, Hermione finally noticed the person who she had bumped in to. "Ace!"

"Going somewhere?" Ace smirked, folding his arms across his chest and observing Hermione's sudden franticness.

"No!" Hermione exclaimed. "I was just-"

"Going inside?" Ace supplied, slipping his arm around Hermione's waist and leading her towards the Three Broomsticks entrance. "Brilliant. That's where I was going."

"Okay, I think we need some rules." Hermione ordered as they walked inside, where they were immediately hit with a blast of hot air and a delicious whiff of Butterbeer.

"Uh-oh." Ace said, pretending to be scared.

"I only have one rule for the moment." Hermione continued. "And that rule is _no physical contact._" Hermione pried Ace's arm off of her waist"None at all. Got it?"

"Got it, babe." Ace agreed, taking a seat in a small, cozy table towards the back of the room. "Now, let's get down to business."

"Yes, let's do." Hermione agreed, taking a seat opposite of Ace. "Now, what exactly do you have in mind with this financing?"

"Be more specific, please." Ace asked, politely. Hermione glared at him. As kind and professional as he sounded, there was a slight _tone _in his voice that made him sound as though he thought the whole thing was a joke. Hermione certainly did not want anyone working for her who was not serious about SPEW.

"Say you loan SPEW the six hundred galleons." Hermione began. "What _exactly _do you expect in return?"

"I believe we've already gone over this." Ace replied, grinning. "I want a position in SPEW. Does president sound alright to you?"

"No!" Hermione exclaimed. "I am the founder and president of SPEW, got it? There's no way I'm letting _you _be in charge of it."

"Yes, I was expecting you'd say that. Okay then, I want to be vice." Ace negotiated.

"Vice-president?" Hermione asked, horrified.

"Yup. Vice-president. I don't care if you've already promised the position to Weasley or Abbott. I want it. I want a big office in the SPEW building, and I want the big sign to say 'founded by Granger _and _McGonagall', not just Granger. That's the deal. Take it or leave it."

Hermione's jaw dropped. Ace's proposition sounded like hell! She'd have to see him _every single day. _People would ask how she and Ace came to finding SPEW _together._ It sounded just horrible. But the thought of actually having a SPEW building…

Hermione sighed. Unprofessionally, she dropped her head into her arms on the table, the wheels in her head spinning. She had two choices: take the money and deal with Ace for the rest of her life, or decline his proposition and be right back at square one. Oh god, square one sounded so horrible.

Hermione sighed once more, then lifted her head up from the table. Glaring at Ace, she stuck out a hand. "You've got yourself a deal, Mr McGonagall. Just don't make me regret it."

Grinning malevolently, Ace took Hermione's extended hand and shook it. "Don't worry. You won't."

……………………………..

"No…not again…please…"

"Not my children! Anything but my children!"

"Get away from me… don't come any closer!"

Frustrated, Draco picked up the tiny pillow from his bed and wrapped it around his ears. He then flung himself onto the thin, uncomfortable mattress on his bed and shut his eyes as tight as he could, trying to block out the cries and pleas of his fellow inmates. They were all older than Draco, and most had been in Azkaban for years. Those who had been in for longer periods of time were much quieter and withdrawn; it was as though they accepted their fate and gave up any hope, and that made it seem as though the Dementors did not affect them. However, Draco could tell that that was not true; the Dementors affected these people just as much, and if not more than they did everyone else.

Draco had not sunken to complete depression, yet; the Dementors were free to suck any happy thoughts from him, because there were not that many happy thoughts to begin with. Draco had never thought about it before, but his life had been pretty miserable. Only in Azkaban did he begin to realize how extremely lucky he was to have Hermione at the time that he did. Hermione was one of the only happy thoughts that Draco had, and as hard as the Dementors tried, Draco would not allow them to take these thoughts away from him. No way in hell would he let them. Hermione was his, his thoughts with Hermione were his, and the Dementors, or anyone else for that matter, were not going to take any of it away from him. Perhaps that was what made Draco so strong in that prison cell: the thought of being together again with Hermione one day.

Draco opened his eyes and sat up, tossing the pillow aside. _We will be together again, _he told himself. _One day, we will. _

But what if Hermione had already moved on? What if she was at Hogwarts at this very moment, cozying up with some ugly, zit-faced seventh-year who showers her with love and security, the things that Draco just couldn't give her anymore? What if –

Suddenly, a Dementor appeared outside of Draco's cell, snapping Draco out of his mind-wandering. The Dementor unlocked Draco's cell.

"What's going on?" Draco asked, confused.

But of course, the Dementor did not reply. Instead, it placed a scaly, rotting hand on Draco's shoulder, sending a cold chill down his spine. Shutting his eyes, Draco allowed his feet to carry him to wherever the Dementor was taking him. Once it stopped, Draco opened his eyes. There, in a small, darkened room, stood the one lady who Draco hadn't even given a second thought to since he was thrown into Azkaban: Narcissa Malfoy.

"Mother!" Draco cried, shocked beyond belief. How had he forgotten all about her? She was only the woman who brought him into the world! Since his father died, Narcissa was all that Draco had. Until Hermione came along, that is. She had clouded his mind so obscurely that he had forgotten all about his own mother. But now that she stood there, silent tears running down her pale, petulant face, Draco could not have been happier to see her.

Without smiling, Narcissa strode across the small room and wrapped Draco into her arms; even though Draco was at least six inches taller, Narcissa still rocked him slightly as though he were her baby all over again.

"Mother." Draco whispered. "Please."

Narcissa released her son, though still gripping his arms tightly. She glanced over his shoulder at the two Dementor's standing near the entrance; obviously they were not going anywhere anytime soon. So, she pulled Draco as far away from the Dementor's as possible.

"What…is…the…matter…with…you?" Narcissa asked, slowly and steadily.

"Mother, please-" Draco repeated.

Instantly, he was interrupted. "It hasn't even been a year since your father died!" Narcissa exclaimed in a hushed, angry voice. "All I have now is _you, _son. And what do you do? You go and commit murder. And _why _did you commit murder, huh? For a mudblood!"

Narcissa raised her hand and backhanded Draco across the face. Draco immediately clutched his face, shocked at his mother's violence.

"Have you not seen what killing does to people? It kills _them _in the end. Have you not seen what _mudbloods _do to people? They kill them, as well! Your father died because of mudbloods and muggle-lovers! Where did I go wrong, son? Where? You were so perfect, and now you're just the same as them. A muggle-lover. Disgusting."

Draco hung his head in shame. He had continuously told himself that no one would make him feel shame regarding Hermione; after all, she was the most prized possession that he could ever have. But now, the harsh words that his mother said, it was all Draco could do but feel shamed. Shame on the family name.

"Why are you here, mother?" Draco asked, quietly.

"Isn't that obvious?" Narcissa replied. "I'm here to think of a way to get you out of here."

"Ha!" Draco exclaimed. "I think you're a little too late for that. I killed someone, mother. I'll be in here for a little bit longer, you mark my words."

"Consider them _not _marked." Narcissa retorted. "You listen to me, son. I want no negativity. It is not right for a Malfoy to be behind bars! Even though your father is dead, I still have the Malfoy name. I will get you out of here, son. _You _mark _my _words."

Draco grinned, the same evil grin that only a Malfoy could do. "What do you have in mind, mother?"

"I have one question for you, Draco." Narcissa replied. "Have you ever heard of SPEW?"

…………………………

Two weeks later, Hermione sat at the Gryffindor table eating breakfast with Ron and Hannah. She had sent out a request for the building in Diagon Alley, and so far she had not heard anything from them. Her biggest fear was that someone had already gotten it. That would have been horrible, seeing as she had already made the deal with Ace.

Speaking of Ace, Hermione had not heard from him since their meeting in the Three Broomsticks. No one, Ron especially, was pleased that Ace would now be working with them. Ace was basically a name that was tossed on the floor and spat on in the eyes of all of Hermione's friends. But now that he was to become vice-president of SPEW, it was only fitting that they try to be a little nicer towards him. Ron, of course, did not see it that way.

"Hermione, he is a scum-bag." Ron said slowly, as though Hermione were stupid. "A good-for-nothing, son-of-a-"

"Ron." Hannah warned, sharply.

Suddenly, a loud screech of owls told Hermione that it was mail-time. Sure enough, looking up into the high rafters of the Great Hall, Hermione could see hundreds of owls swooping into the Hall, each one dropping off letters and packages to its recipient. A tanned, rather smallish owl dropped a letter in front of Hermione. Surprised, she picked it up and tore it open. After reading it to herself, she grinned from ear-to-ear as she read it aloud to her friends.

"Dear Ms. Granger." Hermione began, a huge smile plastered across her face. "We have read over your request for the 42 Main St. location in Diagon Alley, and we are pleased to inform you that the former applicant for the premises could not afford the land. So, we hereby proclaim this premise to you and your new business, SPEW, and we hope that your business is a great success."

Following this was a list of rules (such as needing to make a certain income in order to keep the building), a form that Hermione would have to sign stating that she still wished to own the building, and the list of names who owned Diagon Alley. All Hermione had to do was sign the form, and other than that, the building was hers!

"That's so wonderful!" Hannah cried, throwing her arms around Ron.

Ron grinned, pleased to see that Hermione and Hannah were so thrilled. "So when can we 'move in'?" He asked.

"As soon as we want to." Hermione replied. "There are only a couple months left of school. Once we've done our NEWTs, we're free to begin the SPEW business!"

"And what is it that we're _doing_, exactly?" Ron asked, grinning.

Hermione whacked Ron's arm. "Don't be stupid! We're promoting Elfish welfare! Soon enough, we'll be an agency where house-elves will be coming to seeking jobs. It is going to be wonderful! Guaranteed!"

Hermione was so delighted that Ron could not bear to tell her that as long as Ace was around, nothing was going to be wonderful. Now _that _was guaranteed.

……………………….

Later on that night, Hermione was practically skipping down the dark, deserted corridors, obviously still thrilled at the news. She felt so… so _powerful. _This was all coming together, and soon enough it would be perfect. If only Draco could have been there to do this with her. She laughed quietly. Draco would have hated this. He would have said 'fuck the house-elves'. It was just in his nature. But still, having Draco by her side while she was bringing SPEW together would have been so much better for Hermione. Sighing, Hermione's smile faded. Having Draco by her side would have made _everything _better. But he wasn't by her side. He was thousands of miles away, locked behind bars in a cell in Azkaban. And he would not be released for years. Sighing again, Hermione realized that she would just have to face reality. It was so hard, though –

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the little mudblood." A familiar voice drawled.

Looking up, Hermione was disappointed to see Blaise Zabini coming down the corridor opposite of her. He was smirking insufferably, which caused a sudden rush of anger in Hermione.

"Go fuck yourself." Hermione said, turning and heading in the opposite direction, trying to get as far away from Blaise as possible.

Suddenly, Hermione felt a hand grab her wrist. She turned to see Blaise standing right behind her. Damn, he was quick.

"Let go of me, Zabini." Hermione warned in a threatening voice.

Blaise laughed menacingly. "I'm so scared, now. What's the matter, mudblood? We haven't had one of our heart-to-heart's in a while, now. Don't you think it's about time we did?"

"No!" Hermione exclaimed, suddenly jerking herself in an attempt to escape from Blaise's unnaturally tight grip.

Blaise's hold on Hermione's wrist suddenly loosened. She looked into his eyes and noticed that they were wide with shock. Looking over his shoulder, Hermione saw Harry Potter standing at least ten feet away from where she and Blaise were, holding out his wand and aiming it at Blaise. He must have cursed him, because Blaise began levitating a few feet off of the ground, completely immobile.

"Harry?" Hermione said as she pried Blaise's fingers off of her wrist.

"One day I will blast that _thing _to hell." Harry said, walking over to Blaise and looking as though he would have loved nothing more but to kick him. However, he refrained himself.

Hermione sighed. "Thank you, Harry."

"Whatever." Harry replied. He turned to leave, but feeling guilty, Hermione stopped him.

"Uh, Harry?" Hermione ventured timidly, a little intimidated by what his reaction might be. But to her surprise, he just turned around and waited expectantly. Clearing her throat, Hermione said, "I want to apologize for being so bitchy over the last few months. My behavior is totally uncalled for, especially since we used to be such great friends. Maybe…" She inhaled a deep breath, then exhaled anxiously. "Maybe we could be friends again."

To Hermione's great surprise, Harry grinned like he had never grinned before. He looked like the old Harry, before things got all messed up. Suddenly, he walked up to Hermione and threw his arms around her, pulling her into a tight embrace. Hermione smiled; she had not planned on making up with Harry, but she had to admit that it sure was nice to have her old friend back.

"Hermione?"

Pulling away from Harry, Hermione turned around to see Ron standing behind her, looking confused. He clued in suddenly, though. Then, totally unexpectedly, he strode over to where Hermione and Harry were standing and held out a hand towards Harry, obviously wanting to make amends.

Grinning, Harry took Ron's hand and instead of shaking it, he pulled Ron into a hug that looked even tighter than Hermione's. A tear rolled down Hermione's face. She had her friends back. It would be just like old times. Her, Harry and Ron, and now Hannah of course. Things were going to be great. SPEW was going to take off and give house-elves homes, she would be out of Hogwarts in a few months time, and now the three amigos were together again. Everything was just perfect.

Hermione turned away from Ron and Harry and sighed, thinking about the snowball fight that she had had with Draco that one day in Hogsmeade. She realized that everything was _not _perfect. Not even a little bit. If it were possible, she would have given everything up, just to have Draco in her arms again.

Another tear slid down Hermione's cheek. But this time, it was for a whole different reason.


	33. Two Birds with One Stone

Two Birds with One Stone

"Ha!" Hermione cried, slamming the _Daily Prophet_ down in front of Ron's breakfast a month later. "How wrong he was!"

"How wrong _who _was?" Ron asked, obviously bothered that Hermione had disrupted his pancake breakfast.

"Fudge, of course!" Hermione exclaimed, a huge grin plastered across her red, blotchy face. She had obviously run all the way down to the Great Hall just to flaunt the _Daily Prophet_ in front of Ron. "Aren't you going to read it?"

Glaring at Hermione, Ron picked up the copy of the newspaper and straightened it so that he could read the cover page. When he saw the headline, his jaw dropped in disbelief. "_SPEW: Another Wrench in the Minister's Plans." _Ron read. "Oh, my god!"

"I know!" Hermione cried, still incredibly excited. "Fudge directly told me that day in Dumbledore's office that SPEW would _not _hit the Daily Prophet. Well, wasn't he wrong! I wonder how they found out, though."

"Yeah." Ron agreed absentmindedly, grinning as he read the article. "Founded by you and Ace McGonagall. That's pretty impressive."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I saw that. I just don't get it. Who would tell the _Daily Prophet_? And how did that person know about Ace-" Hermione stopped in mid-sentence, realization dawning on her face. "Ace! Of course! That stupid, arrogant little twit!" Standing up, Hermione marched herself out of the Great Hall without another word, Ron staring confusedly after her. She half-walked, half-ran until she burst through the main doors out into the cool, spring weather. Once she was outside, she sprinted for what felt like eternity until she finally reached a spot far, far away from Hogwarts. Then, closing her eyes, Hermione focused on Ace McGonagall and the little home that he had been residing in.

_CRACK!_

The next minute, after Hermione had opened her eyes, the scenario had completely changed from a woodsy, outdoors scene to inside what looked like a log cabin, with Ace sitting in a chair at a small table drinking coffee and reading the _Daily Prophet. _

"You jerk!" Hermione cried.

Ace looked up in shock, but quickly recovered. "What have I done this time?"

"You informed the Daily Prophet about SPEW! Yes, I wanted them to know, but not now! We're not even ready! And of course you had to say that _you _co-founded, which you didn't, you lying, cheating, dirty-"

Ace shook his head, clearly unbothered by Hermione's anger. "Chill, Granger. I didn't tell the _Daily Prophet _anything."

Hermione glared at him, growing even angrier at Ace's blunt denial. "Of course you did! How else would they have-"

Ace shrugged his shoulders. "Beats me. But I didn't tell them, bottom line."

Hermione sunk into the chair across from Ace, a sudden surge of embarrassment washing over her. She refused to apologize, though. Either way the top spun, Ace was still a jerk. "So who did, then?"

"Don't know, don't care." Ace replied, taking another sip of his coffee.

"So, why haven't you bothered to keep in touch?" Hermione asked, eager to change the subject.

Ace shrugged again. "I figured you'd call on me when you're ready to."

Hermione examined him suspiciously. "Why are you so – _zen – _this morning?"

"Zen?"

"Cool, calm, not _moronic_." Hermione explained. "Why?"

"Why not?" Ace replied, sneakily.

Hermione glared at him once more, but did not answer his reply.

"So, what do we do now that the Daily Prophet knows about SPEW?" Ace asked, finally putting down his newspaper.

Now it was Hermione's turn to shrug. "Nothing, I suppose. I just wish the year was _over _already so we can start working."

"Well, is SPEW something you're planning to do with the rest of your life?" Ace asked.

Hermione was stumped. She'd never really thought about that before. Sure, she wanted to promote SPEW for a few years, but what happened if it failed? _It won't fail, _Hermione told herself. This was Hermione's creation, and she was not one to let something fail. "I'm not sure." She finally replied.

"If you're planning on sticking with SPEW, then I see no need for you to get your NEWTs. You're already in the president seat of your own company. NEWTs and Hogwarts are juvenile compared to what you're going to do once you're out in the real world."

Hermione stared at Ace. The words that he was saying seemed to be seeping into her like a sponge sopping up water. Everything he said was true. It was not some sort of scheme to get Hermione to drop out of school so that she did not have an education; the honest-to-god truth was, Hermione really didn't need her NEWTs.

"Think about it." Ace offered. "It's not like you have to drop out straight away. I suppose if you wanted to you could still say. There's just no _point. _If you're out of Hogwarts, you can start on SPEW right away. And you can always go back to school if the house-elf thing doesn't work out, right?"

_That's true, _Hermione told herself. _Dropping out now is not dropping out forever. I can always come back if I wanted to._

"I have to go." Hermione said abruptly. She stood up. "I have Potions. I'll… I'll keep in touch, alright?"

Ace nodded silently, still sipping away at his coffee. "Later."

_CRACK!_

Two seconds later, Hermione was standing in the same spot she had been before Apparating to Ace's hut. She immediately began running towards the school, her thoughts all scrambling around in her head. Before she knew it, Hermione was standing in front of the Potions classroom, obviously late. She timidly knocked at the door.

"Well, what do you know?" Snape declared as he opened the large, wooden door to his classroom. "Miss Granger has decided to grace us with her presence. Class, please, a round of applause for Hogwarts new queen."

The Slytherins howled and stood up, clapping their hands as though they were at the Quidditch World Cup. Hermione made her way to her seat beside Ron, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"That's twenty points from Gryffindor, Miss Granger. Perhaps we should send you back to pre-Hogwarts to learn how to be on time before I allow you into my classroom again." Snape smirked.

The Slytherins roared with laughter once more, while Hermione sunk lower and lower into her chair. Ron glared at Snape, but said nothing.

"Back to the lesson!" Snape ordered, whipping around and slamming his pointer against the instructions on the board. "I will put you into pairs, and you and your partner will come up with a potion to revitalize injured Hippogriffs. There will be a test in a month's time where there will be Hippogriffs present, and it is the job of you and your partner to cure their injuries. Any questions?"

Blaise's hand shot into the air.

"Mr Zabini?" Snape asked. It was well-known that as much of a Slytherin as Blaise was, Snape never really liked him. The reason was unknown; perhaps it had to do with Blaise putting a toad in Snape's desk in his third year, or perhaps it was Blaise's lack of family history that Snape did not like. Nevertheless, Snape certainly did not have the same soft spot for Blaise as he used to have for Draco.

"Can we pick our own partners?" Blaise asked, scooting his chair a bit closer to Goyle to indicate who he wanted to work with.

"I believe I already said that _I _would be putting you into partners." Snape replied, nastily. "Every time you work with Goyle, you always hand in less than worthy work, Mr Zabini." Suddenly, a light bulb seemed to have clicked on in Snape's head. He grinned evilly at Blaise, then turned his gaze to Hermione. "Miss Granger, you can work with Blaise."

Hermione's eyes opened widely as she glanced at Blaise, who immediately began to throw a silent fit as Snape continued pairing off the rest of the students.

Hermione's hand shot in the air.

"Yes, Mr Granger?" Snape asked, preparing for her upcoming arguments.

"Sir, I can't work with Blaise. I don't feel that I would be able to put 100 into the assignment if I am forced to work with him-"

"Well, aren't you just the spoiled little brat?" Snape replied, nastily. "One thing that you need to learn, among many others, might I add, is that you will always be forced to work with those who you do not particularly like. It is part of life, and as much of a bratty little child as you are, you will learn that someday."

Hermione looked as though she was about to cry at being called a spoiled brat by one of her professors.

"Sir, that is uncalled for!" Ron cried, noticing Hermione's watery eyes.

"Fifty points from Gryffindor for your rude outburst, Mr Weasley." Snape said, calmly. "I am the professor. You are the student. It is not your place to tell me what is uncalled for, especially as you are not Miss Granger-"

"But I am." Hermione replied, standing up. "You, sir, have been rude to me from day one. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because I'm a Gryffindor, maybe it's because I'm friends with Harry."

"And maybe it is because you are an insufferable know-it-all." Snape replied, angrily. "I suggest you sit down this instant if you do not want to suffer severe consequences, Miss Granger."

"No." Hermione replied, quietly.

"Excuse me?" Snape demanded, his voice growing angrier and more impatient by the second.

"I said no."

"Well, then I suppose you will get the ... er, _pleasure …_of Professor Snape's consequences." Snape replied, grinning maliciously.

"No, I don't think I will." Hermione said as she began gathering her things together. "You see, sir, I'm leaving Hogwarts. I don't need to put up with you any longer, so I won't. Good day." Bravely, Hermione strode across the dungeon, her books tucked neatly under her arms as she clutched on to them out of anxiety.

"You shall not treat me in this manor!" Snape screamed after her, spitting with rage. But Hermione ignored him, and the entire class watched in amazement as she exited the Potions dungeon for the last time.

………………………….

"I didn't think you'd have made up your mind so quickly." Ace noted as Hermione allowed him entrance into her dormitory once lunch had ended. She had stayed cooped up in her bedroom since the Potions incident that morning, and surprisingly neither Ron nor Harry had shown up outside her bedroom door and demanded to know what exactly had happened. They probably thought that Hermione just needed some space; after all, Hermione Granger wouldn't really drop out of Hogwarts, would she?

Anyways, after lunch had ended and Hermione was sure that all of her friends were back in class, she had taken the liberty of summoning Ace to the dormitory to fill him in on what had happened.

"I wasn't quite planning on it." Hermione explained, pouring herself a glass of cold water from the jug on the nearest desk. "But then Snape…"

Ace grinned. "If anyone were to decide for you, it would definitely be Snape."

Hermione nodded. "You got that right. I'm just sick of letting him intimidate me all the time! No more, though. I'm my own woman now. It's all about SPEW."

"Talked to Dumbledore yet?" Ace asked.

Hermione shuddered. "No. I don't really I want to. I have to, of course. He's been so good to me. He's going to be disappointed that I've decided to do this. But I just can't base my decisions on other people anymore. I've got to look out for myself, and that's exactly what I'm doing."

"Smart." Ace commented.

Hermione eyed him suspiciously. "Seriously, what's going on with you? You're just not the same."

Ace smirked. "How am I not the same?"

"Well, for one, you haven't made a move on me at all today." Hermione noted.

"Maybe I've realized that you're just not as desirable as I used to think you were." Ace replied, kicking off his shoes and plopping himself down on the comfortable sofa in the middle of the room.

"Okay, obviously you are the same. Sorry I mentioned it." Hermione said coldly.

Ace laughed. "I'm just kidding, Hermione. Learn to take a joke."

"Oh, my god." Hermione said. "What happened to you? And don't give me that nothing bullshit, because that's exactly what it is. Bullshit."

Ace shrugged. "Maybe I just want to get along. We're going to be working together, in case I need to remind you. I think _you _need to work on your manors. Especially if you want to be working in the business that _I_ co-founded."

Hermione let out an undignified sound. "Excuse _me_! Try the business that _I founded._"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, babe." Ace smirked.

"You're so… frustrating!" Hermione cried, her hands balling into fists. "Get out of my dormitory. If McGonagall or Dumbledore find out that you've been here, they're going to be pissed. So get out."

Ace stood up and put his shoes back on. "Before I go, let me just give you something."

Before Hermione could ask what it was that he wanted to give her, Ace suddenly placed his hands on Hermione's waist and pulled her body right up against his, and before she could protest at all, he smashed his lips against hers, prying them open immediately and sliding his tongue into her mouth for a full-on passionate battle.

Finally coming to her senses, Hermione pushed Ace away from her and took a couple of steps backwards. "What the _hell _was that?"

"Just something that I wanted you to remember. Later, Granger."

Hermione watched as Ace climbed through the portrait hole and disappeared on the other side. Working with him was going to be incredibly difficult. She could already tell.

……………………………….

"Mother." Draco observed as he walked into the same tiny, dark room that he had been in a month before with Narcissa Malfoy. He walked towards Narcissa's open arms and allowed her to embrace him: he'd do anything to get as far away from the Dementors as possible. "You haven't kept in touch."

"I know." Narcissa admitted as she pulled away from her son. "I've been keeping busy."

"Does this have to do with the SPEW thing?" Draco asked with a cocked eyebrow.

Narcissa nodded.

"You never did tell me exactly what you had in mind. SPEW was Hermione's little thing. How have you even _heard _about it?"

Draco had been extremely frustrated with his mother. The last time she had visited, she asked him if he'd heard of SPEW. Naturally, he'd said yes. And then she left. Without a word, she left the little room and hadn't bothered to keep in touch or visit until now. And now that she was here, Draco was incredibly interested to know what his mother had in mind.

"I have my ways, dear." Narcissa replied. "Anyways, your darling little mudblood friend has decided to go public with SPEW. Make an incorporation out of it, I mean. She is dead-set on helping house-elves, god forbid. Fudge, on the other hand, is completely against it. Thinks that it is the most absurd idea in the history of magic, and that she should give it up immediately. Personally, I agree. Who has ever heard of free house-elves, working with people instead of for them? Actually earning gold. It's preposterous, not to mention ridiculous." Narcissa paused, staring at her son. "Draco? Are you even listening to me?"

No, he wasn't. The moment his mother had mentioned Hermione's intentions, he had internally grinned, thinking about how silly Hermione was. It was just like her to want to expand on SPEW. _Probably trying to get over me, _Draco smirked to himself. Though, secretly he could not help but think about how sweet that was. Then of course he mentally kicked himself for even thinking about the word sweet. Suddenly, he snapped out of his internal monologue and clued in to his mother's attempts at getting his attention.

"Of course I'm listening to you." Draco said. "Now, are you going to tell me what it has to do with my getting out of here?"

"Patience, son." Narcissa warned. "Now, as I was saying, Fudge is completely against the mudblood's idea. He felt that he would go to any lengths in order to see that her SPEW idea would not reach the _Daily Prophet._"

"And?" Draco asked, already knowing the answer.

"And I saw to it that SPEW would be on the cover of this past's _Daily Prophet _issue." Narcissa replied.

Confused, Draco asked, "Why would you do that? How does that help us?"

"The public is now aware of SPEW. And of Fudge's protests, of course. I think that he is afraid of a house-elf taking over as the minister for magic, or something. He is so angry that he will be willing to do anything to make sure that the mudbloods attempts at making a business out of SPEW will be unsuccessful. Including using you to ensure that that happens."

"Me?" Draco asked, growing more confused by the second. "What can I do?"

"You are the key, son!" Narcissa exclaimed. "You are the most important person in the mudbloods life, god forbid. You have the power to-"

_Knock, knock! _

Both turning around to see who was knocking, Narcissa and Draco noticed Fudge standing in the doorframe, accompanied by two Dementors. He looked uncomfortably anxious, and for once he did not have his green bowler hat with him. However, upon meeting Draco's gaze, he instantly puffed out his chest and strode into the room as though he were the most powerful man on earth.

"Narcissa, this had better be good." Fudge warned, taking a seat across from Draco and his mother. "I am a very busy man."

"Oh, indeed it is." Narcissa replied, grinning maliciously.

"You are aware that your son _spit _in my face?" Fudge asked, glaring at Draco.

"I am. You've told me before, several times." Narcissa said. "And I have told you before that Draco is incredibly sorry and ashamed of his actions."

"I am n-"

"Hush, boy." Narcissa hissed before Draco could say, _I am not. _

"So, what is it that you want to discuss?" Fudge asked.

Narcissa grinned once more. "Exactly how far are you willing to go to make sure that SPEW is not successful?" She asked Fudge.

Fudge's face crinkled up into a disgusted look. "SPEW. That crazy young girl. So much potential and she ruins it all on this _absurd _idea. Such a shame."

"You haven't answered my question, minister." Narcissa noted, locking eyes with Fudge. Sure, Lucius Malfoy had passed on, but whichever way the ball spins, Narcissa was still his wife. Therefore, she still had power. Power meant gold. And gold would come in very handy.

"Is there something you'd like to discuss with me, Narcissa?" Fudge asked. "Because as I said, I am a very busy man."

"Yes, there is. What if I told you that I have a way to ensure that SPEW is _not _a success? In fact, what if I could ensure that it will never work, and that I can personally guarantee it?" Narcissa asked.

"How?" Fudge countered, curiously.

"My son, of course. Draco Malfoy. The mudblood's lover. Do you have any idea how much he means to her?"

"Of course I do. He spit in my face for her, didn't he?" Fudge replied, casting another irate glare at Draco.

"If you release him from Azkaban, he can ensure that SPEW does not work out. The mudblood will hire him if he asks her, of course. And he will find such incriminating evidence against the damned business that the magical world will no longer shed any interest in it; all of the interest that may be there now will be gone. And if he cannot find any incriminating evidence, then he will plant some. Simple as that."

"Why doesn't he just ask her to shut it down?" Fudge asked, raising an eyebrow and obviously intrigued.

"Who's to say that she will not start it up again in a year's time? This way, the magical world will always remember that dirty little secret about SPEW, so they will never support it. Never. It's foolproof, minister. It's up to you, now."

"You want me to release the boy, huh?" Fudge asked, weighing his options.

"Yes, I do. And of course, their will be a little gift for you if you do the Malfoy family this one little favor." She reached into her purse and withdrew a pouch that must have held a thousand galleons. "It's a win-win situation, Cornelius. The only question is, do you want to win?"

Fudge thought hard for what felt like eternity, giving Draco time to think as well.

This was _not _discussed with him! He did not agree to sabotage Hermione's beloved SPEW. He couldn't do it. He loved her too much. _Damn it, there's the L word again, _Draco thought to himself. But it was true: he did love her. Doing this would be like tearing her heart out and stepping on it. It was just not worth it. Not even his freedom was worth it. He wouldn't do it, he refused…

Finally, Fudge extended his hand over the table. "You've got yourself a deal, Narcissa. Let's just hope that your end of the bargain holds up."

Narcissa grinned maliciously as she took Fudge's hand and shook it. _Like hitting two birds with one stone, _she thought to herself. _Draco is free and that mudblood bitch is going down. _


	34. Yearning a Little Too Much for Love

Yearning a Little _Too_ Much for Love

"And?" Ron asked impatiently a few days later.

Hermione, Ron, and Harry were all at the new SPEW building, unofficially called the SPEW Headquarters, and Ron and Harry were, of course, grilling Hermione about what had happened in Snape's classroom.

"And what?" Hermione asked, avoiding both of their eyes as she shuffled together a sheaf of parchment on the modern desk in her new office. The room was a little bit larger than a quarter of a football field; unquestionably the biggest room in the building. Hermione had been settling in during the last couple of days, and gradually the office began to look more personalized by Hermione's things that were scattered everywhere; her huge teddy bear that her parents had given her the day she was born, her OWL results safely enclosed in glass picture frame along with her acceptance letter to Hogwarts, and of course, a picture of Draco in her desk. That, though, was just for her. That way, she could pretend to go to Draco whenever she needed help with something or another; sure, perhaps it was a tad pathetic. But Hermione loved Draco, and if he could not be around to be there for her when she needed him most, than she would damn well pretend that he was.

"And, what's going on?" Harry exclaimed, awed that Hermione was being so impervious. Ron watched on, nodding his head eagerly in agreement; obviously, both wanted the full, detailed 411.

"I've dropped out of Hogwarts." Hermione replied, still avoiding their eyes so that she would not have to see their dubious expressions.

"But…" Ron began, at a loss for words.

"But you're _Hermione._" Harry supplied. "You're the one that everyone expected to pass her OWLs and NEWTs with flying colors and advance to become Minister for Magic or something!"

"Well, you already know that my number one priority is SPEW." Hermione replied, her tone indicating that her news should not have come as such a shock to them.

"I thought your number one priority was _Draco._" Ron muttered under his breath, obviously not meaning for Hermione to hear him. However, she did.

"Ex_cuse _me?" Hermione demanded, her face suddenly growing red with anger. "What did you say?"

Harry glanced at Ron, shaking his head and almost grinning as if to say _damn, you're screwed now. _

"I… uh… just said that, uh…" Ron stammered, unable to repeat the sentence. He glanced at Harry, looking for backup support, but Harry shook his head and took a step back. No way was he getting involved; after all, Ron had just dug his own grave.

"My number one priority is _SPEW_," Hermione stated, her voice a little bit shriller than usual. "I will see to it that it stands on its feet. I'm not even _thinking _about Draco. How dare you even-"

"Sorry!" Ron exclaimed, obviously terrified of a full-blown yelling, one-sided argument from Hermione. "I didn't mean it, honest!"

Hermione glared at Ron angrily, watching him cower in fear on the other side of her desk. Then, she burst out laughing. "You're so stupid!" She exclaimed, still laughing. "What, do you think I'm going to like, kill you or something?" She suddenly went quiet. Joking about killing Ron was not even funny. It only took the flick of a wand or the movement of a knife to kill someone, as Hermione knew full well, seeing as she witnessed a murder.

"Hermione?" Harry asked, softly. "Are you okay?"

Hermione nodded, a lump forming in her throat. _Oh god, I'm going to cry. _

"So, uh, what did Dumbledore have to say?" Ron asked, eager to change the subject.

Hermione, equally as eager, dropped her head in shame. "He was not too happy, I can tell you that. He is completely against students not completing Hogwarts. He said that if I did this, it would be a waste of my talent and intellect. But I explained to him about SPEW and how much it means to me, so he didn't press the matter. He just wished me the best of luck and said that I could come back anytime. And that was it."

Ron let out a long whistle. "Was he angry?"

Hermione shook her head. "I think that was the worst thing about it. He wasn't angry at all; more disappointed."

"What about your parents?" Harry asked.

"My mom is royally _pissed._" Hermione replied. "And I think my dad is even more pissed. After the Draco incident, they were already incredibly disappointed with me. I shouldn't have even told them about that. And now this? I think that if I do one more stupid thing, they're going to disown me."

Harry laughed, then realized that Hermione was not kidding. "I'm sure they'll never disown you. Once they see how big of a success SPEW is, they won't think twice about all of this nonsense. Don't give it another thought."

Hermione smiled, preparing to thank Harry for being so kind considering everything that had gone on between them, but just as she opened her mouth, they were interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Yo, boss." Ace said. Hermione glanced over Ron's shoulder to see who had spoken, and boy, was she shocked to see Ace. He was dressed in an expensive navy blue suit; it made him look older and more sophisticated, but the distinguishable blond highlights in his hair and the way his bangs flickered across his forehead brought out the younger, boyish part in him. The sexy, boyish part.

Finally realizing that she was staring, Hermione cleared her throat and said, "What can I do for you, Ace?"

"I figured we should go over the advertisements for SPEW." Ace suggested, indicating the large, leather brief case in his hand. "I scribbled down some ideas, so I guess it's up to you to see what you like and what you don't like."

Hermione's jaw dropped in disbelief. Ace actually taking SPEW seriously? Unbelievable. "You know that's not your job." Hermione said. "I'll hire someone for design-"

"And until then, we need to get this going." Ace interrupted, walking over to Hermione's desk and dropping his brief case on top of it. "Now, if you two don't mind-"

"But we do." Ron snarled, glaring at Ace.

"Yeah, so you can get lost until we're finished our conversation." Harry added, incredulous at Ace's extreme rudeness.

Ace glanced at Hermione, as though asking her what to do.

Hermione looked solemnly at both Harry and Ron. "Harry, Ron, I'm sorry, but we do need to start cracking. We have a long ways ahead of us, and we really should get started as soon as possible-"

Ron stared at her in astonishment, but decided not to comment or get angry. That was the last thing that any of them needed.

"Yeah, and you two should be scooting off to school anyways, shouldn't you?" Ace added, smirking.

Ron and Harry both sent Ace the dirtiest look they could muster, but they still stayed silent.

"Okay then, we'll go." Ron said to Hermione. "If you need us, just send an owl."

"Yeah," Harry agreed. "Later, Hermione."

"Bye," Hermione said, waving as she watched them disappear out of thin air. She then turned her attention to Ace, secretly cursing him for making her seem evil in front of her best friends. She couldn't argue, though; Ace was right, it was about time that they started getting down to business.

"They are seriously the _most _annoying children I've ever met." Ace commented, taking a seat in the chair across from Hermione's desk.

"They're not children." Hermione said. "They're the same age as I am, if I must remind you."

"Yes, but they're the ones who are still in school." Ace replied.

"Yeah, they're the smart ones." Hermione muttered under her breath.

"Whoa-ho!" Ace exclaimed. He reached his hand across the desk and lifted Hermione's chin so that she was looking directly into his eyes. "We're not having second thoughts now, are we?"

Hermione sighed. "No. I just… I just don't _know, _you know? This is such a big decision to make, but compared to other life decisions, it's nothing. If I'm doubting myself now, how am I supposed to know whether I'll be doubting myself in a few years from now when an even harder decision surfaces?"

Ace considered this. The expression on his face made him look as though he had never thought about anything difficult in his life; definitely priceless. "How about you just take it one step at a time, okay? Believe it or not, this is not that big of a decision. You can always go back to Hogwarts, no questions asked. Think of it as spell work. Say you're working on the Impedimenta charm, right? Well, you're halfway through it and then the Patronus charm pops up and you think, 'hey, I really want to learn that'. So, you stop learning Impedimenta and you improve your Patronus. Since the Patronus is much better, you probably want to keep working on it until it's flawless, right? But you can always go back and finish learning the Impedimenta charm. You can always go back. Don't sweat it, Hermione. You'll be fine."

Hermione was speechless; she found herself staring into Ace's mysterious, blue eyes, completely unaware that she was doing so. How could such a wonderful answer come out of the mouth of a boy who portrays himself to be selfish, horny, and at a complete disregard for other people's feelings? There was seriously something wrong with him. "Um, Ace? Really, what's up?"

"Huh?" Ace asked, playing the part of the innocent, know-nothing boy.

"What's up with you! You're so… weird, lately."

"So because I try to give you some advice, I'm suddenly weird?" Ace asked, insulted. "Fine, I see how it is. See if I ever try and help again. Later." Ace stood up abruptly and left the office without another word.

"Shit." Hermione muttered under her breath. _What's wrong with me? He seemed like he genuinely wanted to help. I just strike out left and right, don't I?_

If only Narcissa were there at that moment. She'd be able to answer that question.

………………………………

Hermione yawned and rubbed her eyes before stretching every ounce of her body, all the while almost wishing that she hadn't started SPEW. Who would have thought that the first night as President of her own company, Hermione would be stuck in the office at ten thirty at night? Not Hermione, obviously. She was still constantly examining the different layouts of advertisements that Ace had drawn up. Surprisingly, they were all done extremely well; however, there was something missing. The drawing that Hermione was considering using on the front of the building was clear and straight to the point: a unity of nicely dressed house-elves all holding up one, huge planet earth, they're grins extending all the way to their fashionably pointy hats. It was wonderful and concise, but Hermione could not help but feel that something was missing.

"Hmm…" She thought aloud; suddenly, an idea hit her. She finally picked up a quill and began sketching Ace's drawing onto a separate piece of parchment; it was almost an exact replica of Ace's drawing (with the exception that it was not done as nicely), except that Hermione had added a house-elf who looked uncannily like Dobby directly underneath the large earth, and he was assisting in helping hold it up. The only difference from the other house-elves was that he was wearing a sash around his chest that read _Minister for Magic_. Grinning, Hermione threw down the quill on top of the parchment, extremely relieved that she had finally gotten one task out of the way.

_Knock, Knock!_

Startled, Hermione let out a little cry of shock. "Ace!" She exclaimed, surprised at seeing Ace framed in the doorway to her gigantic, homey office. "I didn't know that anyone else was still here!"

"Yeah, well, it's late." Ace said, with a hint of iciness.

"Look, I'm happy you're here." Hermione said concisely. "I wanted to apologize for what happened earlier. You're right; I'm being rude in continuing to assume that there is something wrong with you. Maybe you have changed, and I'm just slow on the uptake. I'll get used to it, I promise."

"That's actually why I'm here." Ace said. "I wanted to talk to you."

"About?" Hermione asked.

"About what's wrong with me." Ace replied.

"I just said that I didn't think there was-"

"But there _is _something wrong." Ace interrupted, cutting Hermione off.

"Oh." Hermione replied, dumbfounded. She stood up and sat on top of her desk so that she did not look too formal when Ace obviously wanted to talk about something important. "Uh, okay. Take a seat." She indicated the comfy looking armchair opposite of her desk.

Ace shook his head. Instead of sitting down, he walked straight up to Hermione so that his face was only a few inches away from her own.

"Do you ever get that feeling?" He said quietly, running his thumb along Hermione's thigh.

Completely taken aback, Hermione replied, "What feeling?"

"That feeling when you really want something and you know that you can't have it." Ace answered, still speaking softly. "But then when you're really close to it, all you really want to do is reach out and grab it and never let it go."

Without warning, Ace put both of his hands on Hermione's waist and leaned in. He kissed her gently, then pulled away and looked deep within her eyes. Hermione gazed back, shocked at Ace's repetitive actions, but also stunned that he had only kissed her gently.

When Hermione did not protest, Ace leaned in once more for a more passionate kiss; he wrapped his arms around her and smashed into her lips with his own. Instead of impeding him, Hermione lifted her arms and wrapped them around Ace's neck, returning the kiss with an equal amount of passion. They kissed for what felt like centuries until they both slowly descended onto the desk, Hermione lying down on top of the parchment with her sketch scrawled on it. Ace moved his hands around Hermione's body; finally, they began to move up. He gently moved them up and over Hermione's breasts, then without stopping, down towards her back before he dropped them palm-first onto the hard, oak desk. Finally, Ace pulled away. He and Hermione were both breathing very heavily.

"Now, here's my question for you." Ace said, still panting. He dropped his tone to a soft, low voice and whispered, "Can you succumb to desire?"

Before Hermione could answer, she heard footsteps growing louder and louder, obviously going in her direction. Her eyes widened and she sat up abruptly, causing Ace to stand up as well. "Oh my god, somebody's coming!" She whispered, anxiously. "What if it's Ron or Harry!"

Ace grinned. He leaned in and kissed Hermione once more, then took a step back and Apparated, disappearing from sight. Slightly hysterical, Hermione patted down her extremely messy hair, attempting to make it look as though nothing had just happened. She smoothed out the creases in her skirt as the footsteps increased in volume, then hurried around frantically, shuffling together the parchment on her desk and straightening everything so that it looked professional. Suddenly, the footsteps stopped. Hermione, who was not facing the entrance, took a quick, silent breath. She prayed that there was no evidence lying around of what had just happened. But what _had _just happened? Did she just _willingly make out _with Ace McGonagall? Hermione was mistaken. There wasn't anything wrong with Ace; there was something wrong with her.

Sighing internally, Hermione turned around to see who was in hernew building at this time of night. But the sight that met her eyes was not who she had expected; in fact, she had expected _anyone _but him. Anyone. His eyes were darker than they had been before; the last time she had seen him, his eyes had been gray and challenging. Now, they were dark and mysterious, as though he had been through traumas that no one could relate to. Yet, how ever dark and mysterious he may have been, he still smirked slightly the moment he and Hermione had locked eyes. That same, infamous, wondrous smirk that, since the moment she had realized how much he meant to her, had made her heart melt like ice on a hot summer's day.

She cupped her trembling hand on her mouth and whispered, "Oh, my god." Then, without another thought, she raced across the room and threw her arms around him, pulling him into a deep, meaningful embrace. A single tear glided down her cheek as she held on to him for dear life. "Draco." she whispered. Then, of course, the tears began to flow.


	35. Juvenile Idiots

Juvenile Idiots

After a few silent moments of weeping with her arms wrapped tightly around Draco, Hermione finally pulled away and wiped all of the tears off of her rosy, pink cheeks. She stared into his dark, gray eyes, unable to select the right words to say. Finally, she asked, "How… how are you here?"

Draco smirked once more as he gazed into her eyes, unable to believe that he had been away from such a beautiful girl for so long. "I was released from Azkaban."

"W-what?" Hermione stammered, hardly daring to believe it.

"Yup. Fudge signed to it earlier this morning. He needed a bit of convincing, of course."

"Convincing by whom?" Hermione asked, her heart still racing uncontrollably.

"My mother. Narcissa. Who'd have thought that she'd come through for me?" Draco asked, grinning.

Hermione's entire insides felt about ten times less heavy the moment he smiled; that smile was breathtaking, bottom line. "I'm so sorry, Draco. If there was anything that I could have done-"

Draco pressed two of his fingers against Hermione's lips. "Shh. Don't bother drudging any of this up. I know you would have done anything humanly possible in order to get me out of that god-forsaken place. Mother has power, that's all."

Hermione immediately fell quiet. She pulled away from Draco's fingers. Ace had _just _kissed those lips not even five minutes earlier. How could things change so _drastically _in such a short amount of time?

"I see you've been busy, though." Draco noted, completely oblivious to Hermione's evident change in mood as he traced his finger along Hermione's desk. _The desk that Ace and I _just _made out on. Oh, god, _she thought.

Hermione nodded, attempting to seem positive. "Well, I needed something to get my mind off of you. Do you have any idea how _heartbroken _I was? How much I longed foryou to be here?"

"I didn't want to be in Azkaban, Hermione." Draco said. "It's not as though it was my fault-"

"What do you mean it wasn't your fault?" Hermione exclaimed. "You _killed _someone, Draco! Murder! That's a huge offense, even in the muggle world."

"I'm not here to argue!" Draco interrupted; obviously, he was angry that Hermione was already pestering him. After all, he had expected a non-stop cry-fest, as well as to be showered in love and attention from her. "I can leave, if you want."

"No!" Hermione cried. Then, more softly, she repeated, "No. Please, just stay. I … I really missed you, Draco. I wasn't sure if I'd ever see you again."

Draco sighed, absolutely dreading the mushy scenario he was in, but also feeling compassionate towards Hermione because he had been in the exact same situation. "I was in the same boat." He admitted, glancing down at the floor. "I would have given anything to get out of that appalling place; not for my freedom, but so that I could be with you."

Hermione's eyes began to well up again. She stared at Draco, still hardly believing that he was standing there before her. All of a sudden, Hermione had an unexpected urge to be with Draco in every way possible. After all, he was the man that she was destined to spend the rest of her life with. She had truly believed that there was a possibility that she'd never see him again, and now that he was here with her, she wanted – no, _needed_ – to be with him. A single tear trickled down her rosy cheek as she offered her hand to Draco. He took it with a puzzled expression on his face.

"I need to be with you." Hermione whispered as she gazed into his eyes, determinedly.

Draco's eyes widened as he looked rapidly around the room. "What, here?"

Hermione shook her head, a tiny giggle escaping her mouth. "I live on the top floor."

"Ah." Draco comprehended. Then, grinning, he allowed Hermione to squeeze his hand tightly before they both Apparated at the same time. Before they knew it, they were in the middle of Hermione's large, one-bedroom apartment. Draco wrapped his arms around Hermione's waist and leaned in for a kiss; Hermione could have sworn that she had felt a spark the moment that their lips had met. They stood in that spot kissing for quite some time, Hermione playing with Draco's white-blond hair and treasuring every passing second. Soon enough, Draco began leading Hermione over to the large, queen-sized bed. Hermione dropped onto the mattress with Draco on top of her, their kiss growing more and more passionate. Hermione nibbled Draco's bottom lip; when she pulled away, she was grinning.

"I love you, Draco." She whispered, her eyes never leaving his.

Despite himself, Draco grinned as well. "I love you, too."

Just as Draco leaned in to continue the infinite, tireless war-of-the-tongues, there was a loud, banging knock at the door.

Both Draco and Hermione immediately looked alarmed, but for different reasons. Draco's first reaction was that there was an intruder in the building; after all, who would be in a corporate building after eleven o' clock at night? Hermione's first reaction was completely different, though. The last that Hermione knew, there had only been one person left in the building, and that person was Ace.

"Don't get it." Hermione whispered. "If we don't answer it, then the person will just go away."

Draco shook his head. "What if it's a psycho person or something? We can't risk it, Hermione." Draco stood up and reached for the fire-poker that sat near the fireplace.

"Draco, don't!" Hermione hissed.

Ignoring her, Draco slowly tip-toed towards the door, where whoever was on the other side was still banging incessantly. The fire-poker was held high over his head, and Draco was ready to smash it over the person on the other end of the door. Reaching for the door handle, he rapidly pulled it open. Sure enough, it was Ace.

"McGonagall!" Draco exclaimed, immediately lowering the fire-poker. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

……………………………………

"Do you think Hermione is still at the spew headquarters?" Ron asked, anxiously glancing at his watch for the thousandth time that night; it read 11:32, one minute past what it had been the last time he had checked.

"It's SPEW." Harry corrected, laughing. "And of course she's still there. She lives there, you know. Why does it matter to you so much?"

"Yeah." Hannah agreed. "Why _does _it matter to you so much?"

Harry, Ron, and Hannah were all sitting in the Head Boy and Girl dormitories; Ron was unusually agitated, but even he could not explain why. Technically, Harry was not allowed to be there, but thanks to his father's Invisibility Cloak, dodging rules was no problem for him.

"It doesn't!" Ron exclaimed, defensively. "I'm just worried about her. I don't like the fact that she and Ace are in the same building almost all the time. You know him; he's a dirty little scumbag. We can't trust him as far as we can throw him."

"Hermione's a big girl, Ron." Hannah said. "She can take care of herself."

"Maybe Ron is right." Harry agreed, gradually growing as disconcerted as Ron. "Ace can't be trusted."

"So what do you want to do?" Hannah asked, crossing her arms. "You want to sneak out of the school and Apparate to SPEW headquarters just to check up on her?" She laughed at her own suggestion.

Both Harry and Ron's eyes lit up. Ron said, "That's brilliant! We should Apparate to SPEW headquarters and check up on her!"

Hannah glared at Ron, furious at his motivation for making sure that Hermione was alright. "I was joking!" Hannah cried. "You're pathetic, Ron. Hermione is a _big girl. _If you two want to be idiots and make complete fools of yourselves, then you go right ahead. I'm staying here. Good night." Hannah abruptly stood up and stalked off angrily towards her bedroom without another word to Ron.

Ron did not even give a second thought to Hannah's furious departure; instead, he said, "Shall we go, then?"

Harry nodded enthusiastically, too excited to make fun of Ron for messing up once more in his disintegrating relationship with Hannah.

………………………………….

"Did you hear me, shithead?" Draco pressed, glaring at Ace's smug expression. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

Hermione closed her eyes and fell back on the bed, horrified that this was happening. Why did Ace always show up at the most inappropriate moments?

"I think I could ask the same of you." Ace smirked, looking Draco up and down. "Unless I'm mistaken, I was under the impression that you were locked up in a cold, dirty cell in Azkaban. Exactly where you belong."

"Go fuck yourself." Draco growled. "You _are _mistaken. I'm here for good. Now, let's try this again. What the _fuck _are you doing here?"

Ace peered over Draco's shoulder to see Hermione lying on her bed, obviously irritated by his presence. "Well, I would have thought that our dear Hermione would have told you, but it looks like you guys have been too busy, eh?"

"You better tell me what you're doing here before I shove this fire-poker down your throat." Draco threatened in a deathly quiet voice.

Ace tutted. "If I were you, I wouldn't be making threats. You never know who's going to take it seriously and report you to the Ministry of Magic. Your ass will be thrown back into Azkaban so fast that you won't even get to fuck your girlfriend once."

"Oh, that's it." Draco said, throwing down the fire-poker. He lifted both of his fists and said, "Let's go."

Ace laughed. "You're seventeen, buddy. I'm not going to hit someone so young. There must be some sort of law for that."

Before Ace could see what had happened, Draco punched him square in the face. "Come on, _shithead._"

"Draco, don't!" Hermione cried, the scenario looking all-to memorable. An unfamiliar room, two boys who had liked her, one about to get seriously injured…

"You really don't want to do this, buddy." Ace said quietly, the smirk wiped off of his handsome face.

"Wanna bet?" Draco said, grinning menacingly. He drew back his fist, ready to throw another punch.

"Draco!" Hermione screamed. She leaped off of the bed and flung herself in between Draco and Ace. Draco released his arm, but immediately stopped it as he noticed Hermione's presence; his fist wasn't even an inch away from Hermione's head.

"What the bloody hell, Hermione!" Draco cried, pissed at her interference.

"Do you not remember what happened last time you fought over something stupid and insufficient?" Hermione demanded, equally angry. "You just can't control yourself, can you?"

"Hermione, don't start-" Draco began.

"She's got a point." Ace smirked.

"And you!" Hermione exclaimed, rounding on Ace. "Go home! Seriously, what are you still doing here?"

"I wanted to talk to you about what just happened." Ace hinted in a superior tone; obviously, he did not care if Draco knew about what had happened between the two of them.

"Ace, not now." Hermione warned, forebodingly.

"What happened?" Draco immediately demanded.

"Nothing." Hermione replied, instantly. "Just an argument we had. Ace, we can talk about it later, okay?"

"Are you sure?" Ace persisted. "Because I'd love to talk about it now. It was a – er, _steamy – _conversation. Best we get it out of the way immediately, don't you agree?"

"Hermione, you still haven't told me what the hell he's doing here." Draco interrupted.

Hermione inhaled deeply, preparing herself for Draco's angry reaction. "Ace works here." She finally answered.

_Angry reaction _was an understatement. "WHAT!" He exploded. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN HE WORKS HERE?"

"He funded SPEW!" Hermione exclaimed. "We needed him! We couldn't afford anything without him!"

"I'M A MALFOY!" Draco roared, completely disregarding Hermione's reasoning. "I COULD HAVE FUNDED YOU!"

"That would have been difficult, seeing as you were in Azkaban!" Hermione shouted, heatedly.

"YOU COULD HAVE FOUND SOME OTHER WAY!" Draco continued, not bothering to lower his voice. "BUT NO, YOU FELT THE NEED TO BE WITH THIS NON-WORTHY PIECE OF SHIT!"

"Ex_cuse _me?" Ace butted in, angry that his name was being dragged threw the mud. "I've kept quiet, but I won't have you insulting me in my own place of business!"

"Well, it's your place of business no longer." Draco said, calmly. "Pack your stuff and get the fuck out. You're fired. I'll be funding SPEW from now on."

Ace laughed as though Draco was joking, even though he knew that he wasn't. "It's not that simple, buddy."

"If you call me buddy one more time, I swear to God I'll rip your fucking head off." Draco stated. "And yes, it is that simple. Hermione, fire him officially." Draco turned to face Hermione; he crossed his arms and stared at her expectantly, waiting for her to tell Ace to get the hell out of the building. However, Hermione remained quiet.

"I'm afraid Ace is right." Hermione said quietly after a few moments had passed. "He's signed a contract, Draco. That contract entitles him to at least five years in SPEW unless he decides to quit."

"Why would you create such a fucked up contract!" Draco cried.

"It was _his i_dea!" Hermione explained, pointing accusingly at Ace. "He wanted to make sure that I wouldn't fire him after all of the gold had been used up!"

"You shouldn't have done this in the first place!" Draco shouted, changing the subject and placing the blame on Hermione instead of Ace.

"Look, I don't like having to answer to you!" Hermione interrupted. "You come back from Azkaban after such a heinous crime and expect me to allow you to run my life? Come on, Draco!"

"Why the fuck are you throwing that in my face every two fucking seconds!" Draco exclaimed. He was so angry that Hermione could almost see the steam pouring out of his ears. Where all of this anger had come from, she couldn't understand. They'd just been fine five minutes ago, hadn't they?

"The whole 'heinous crime' may have something to do with it." Ace answered, smugly.

"Oh, that's it." Draco muttered, rolling his sleeves up and glaring menacingly at Ace. "Let's go, shithead."

"You know, I don't usually fight." Ace said, giving both Draco and Hermione the impression that he was not about to get down and dirty with Draco. "But in your case, I'll make an exception."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Ace threw a punch in Draco's direction; however, Draco was too quick for him and dodged it instantly.

"You're good." Ace complimented, grinning at Draco.

"You haven't seen anything yet." Draco replied. Then, both boys engaged in a full-blown physical fight.

"Grow up, you two!" Hermione screamed over the loud blows that were being exchanged between one another. "Stop it!"

"Hermione!"

Hermione swiveled around to see the owner of the voice, and never had she been happier to see Ron and Harry than she was at that moment. "Break them up, please!" She begged.

"Malfoy's back!" Harry exclaimed, outraged.

"Why is he back?" Ron asked, angrily baffled.

"Maybe they'll finish each other off," Harry suggested, hopefully.

"Shall we sit back and relax?" Ron offered.

"I say we should." Harry grinned.

"Harry! Ron!" Hermione cried. "Break…them…up!"

Ron and Harry exchanged looks, but decided that it was best not to sit back and watch; otherwise, Hermione would probably have had a field-day. So, they both jumped in to the fight, attempting to get between Ace and Draco.

"Pothead! Weasel!" Draco exclaimed, shocked to see them. "Get out of my way!"

"No." Harry replied. "Break it up, you two!"

"You think I'm going to stop because you're here?" Draco asked, laughing. Then, Draco had thrown a punch at Harry; it was not meant to initiate another fight, but to get Harry out of the way. After all, Harry was a weak, half-blood in Draco's eyes. He wouldn't fight back.

"Oh, now you've done it!" Harry cried. What happened next was expected, of course. Harry became part of the fight, and Ron, defending Harry, jumped in as well. Soon enough, it was a silly, childish physical fight between four full-grown male wizards. It was enough to make Hermione sick.

"Oh, come on!" Hermione screamed; suddenly, as though a light bulb had popped on in her head, she withdrew her wand from inside her robes and aimed them directly at the mob of boys, yelling, "Stupefy!"

Instantly, the room fell silent. Every last one of them had been stunned, putting an end to their juvenile brawl.

"You're all sickening." Hermione said quietly. Then, without another word, she left her own apartment, also leaving behind four boys who now had a lot to think about.


	36. Twice the Discovery

Twice the Discovery

"Great. Now see what you've done?" Ace said, glaring at Draco, Harry and Ron in turn. Ace was sporting a black eye that no one could see because his hand would not remove itself from his eye. God forbid Ace not look gorgeous for more than three seconds.

"What _we've _done?" Draco exclaimed, his voice rather different because of his bruised upper lip. "Hermione and I were fine until you came along. It always seems to work out that way, doesn't it?"

"Admit it." Harry interrupted. "You both fucked up."

Ron laughed. "I'll agree with you there, mate."

"Would you like my fist in your jaw, Potter?" Draco asked, balling his hand into a well-rounded fist "Because that can surely be arranged."

"More threats, Malfoy?" Ace smirked; he was definitely venturing into forbidden territory once again. Draco could have sworn that Ace was _asking _for another strikesquare in the eye. Before Draco could say anything, Ace said, "Well, this has been fun, but I think I'll be off. As entertaining as this was, I have much better things to be doing with my time. Ta."

Draco, Harry and Ron all watched Ace leave, equal amounts of disgust plastered over each and every one of their faces.

"God, I hate him." Ron said through gritted teeth. "We've seriously got to do something about him."

"Too right you are, mate." Harry replied, lying back on his elbows with his legs crossed. "But what can we do? He's VP of Hermione's idiotic SPEW."

"He doesn't have to be." Draco disrupted

"Butt out, Malfoy." Harry said, tiredly. "Don't you have somewhere to be? Like back in Azkaban?"

Ron laughed, giving Harry a low high-five.

"I'm going to disregard that comment." Draco said; obviously, he was already prepared to be bomb-barded with Azkaban jokes. _Just shrug and let it roll off your shoulder, _he told himself constantly. It seemed to be working, too. So far. "I'm completely serious. Believe it or not, I can't stand Ace more than I can't stand you two lightheaded dimwits. I'm willing to put our differences aside in order to get rid of him."

"Lightheaded?" Harry cried.

"Dimwits?" Ron demanded.

"Throw at me what you'd like." Draco said. "Call me dung, call me a loser, I don't give two shits, honestly. I'm trying to make a proposition here. Focus on what's laying right in front of you."

"Think he's trying to make friends?" Harry smirked, speaking in a low voice to Ron.

"I think he is." Ron replied.

"And who do we hate more? Malfoy or McGonagall?" Harry asked.

"I'd say we hate both equally." Ron answered.

"I agree." Harry settled.

"So we've got our answer, then?" Ron asked.

"I think we do." Harry rejoined

They both turned to face Draco, who was attempting unsuccessfully to eavesdrop, and said in unison, "No!"

Draco shrugged, slightly and surprisingly disappointed by their answer. "Okay. Fine. We'll see what you think in a month or two from now when Ace sweeps Hermione off of her feet and the two end up being the most sickening couple in the entire wizarding world. We'll see how you feel, then. Good day, dimwits."

For the second time in ten minutes, Harry and Draco both watched someone who they detested with every hatred bone in their body walk out of Hermione's bedroom.

"He called us dimwits again!" Ron cried, outraged

"Seems a bit insecure, doesn't he?" Harry observed.

"He does. Then again, Hermione's obviously not too happy with him." Ron noted.

"True." Harry said.

Ron laughed. "Malfoy tried to befriend _us_! Ha! And pigs hadn't even flown, yet!"

"Talk about unexpected." Harry said.

"I guess we're going to need to get used to the unexpected." Ron sighed.

Harry let his elbows fall out from under him so that he was lying on his back. "Too right you are, mate. Too right you are."

The next morning, Hermione woke upstill groggy from the night before.She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and tried with all of her strength not to think about what had happened the night before. After she had made her statement in front of Draco, Ace, Harry and Ron, she Apparated back to Hogwarts, then made her way to the one person who she knew would always be there to help her through thick and through thin, no matter what happened.

"Up already?" Hagrid smiled from the sink, where he was bustling around preparing tea.

"What time is it?" Hermione asked, sleepily

"A bit pas' nine." Hagrid answered.

She sighed and fell back onto the cushy pillow, wishing that the day would end instead of just begin. She had fallen asleep on Hagrid's couch only fifteen minutes after she had arrived, so Hagrid did not know why she was there. "Sleep all righ'?" He asked, still smiling warmly.

"Yes." Hermione answered.

"I don' want ter pry, Hermione, but do yeh wanna talk about what's goin' on?" Hagrid asked carefully, passing a mug of tea to Hermione before seating himself in the armchair across from her. The armchair was about two sizes too small for Hagrid's large size, but he managed to squeeze himself in somewhat comfortably.

Hermione sighed. Honestly, she didn't want to tell Hagrid what was going on, but she felt that she owed it to him because of his kind hospitality. "It's just... boys." She said, lamely.

"Boys!" Hagrid exclaimed, laughing. "Well o' course its about boys! Yer growin' up, Hermione. Yer gonna have them troubles sooner or later, it jus' seemed to happen sooner fer yeh."

Hermione managed a smile as she wrapped her hands around her steaming tea. "Yeah, that's what I thought, too. But it seems to be more complicating then what I had imagined, you know?"

"What do yeh mean?" Hagrid asked, confused.

"It's just... Draco." Hermione answered, heat rising to her cheeks. "And Ace. And Harry and Ron. They're just so immature. I'd have thought that they'd grow up seeing as their seventh year is almost over. But no, of course they haven't. They're so frustrating, sometimes I-"

"What do yeh mean _Draco_?" Hagrid asked. "Malfoy's in Azkaban!"

"Not anymore." Hermione answered. "He was released yesterday."

"Why!" Hagrid exclaimed. "He's a Malfoy! The on'y safe place fer them is behin' bars!"

Hermione fell quiet and kept her eyes focused on a tiny, black speck on the floor, not wanting to look Hagrid in the eye for fear of crying.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Hermione." Hagrid said, sympathetically. "I didn't know yeh was so close with him. I saw yeh around with him a lot, and I read the stories in the Daily Prophet, but I didn't know it was so serious. I though' it was jus' some teen drama."

"I'm sorry, Hagrid." Hermione apologized. "I never bothered to come visit you much this year, did I?"

"Don' think twice about it." Hagrid grinned. "Yeh're here now, righ'? An' don' worry about them boys. Yeh're the nicest, sweetest girl I know. If the wizards of the pas' love yeh, then yeh'll be all righ'. It'll all turn out all righ' in the end. Yeh just watch."

"Hermione smiled. She sat up and leaned over to hug Hagrid. "Thanks, Hagrid. I hope you're right."

Hagrid continued to grin as he pulled away from Hermione; he held her shoulders and couldn't help but feel proud of her. "Now, yeh go talk ter Malfoy, all righ'? Get things fixed up with him. Goodness knows yeh could use some happiness in yer life righ' about now."

Hermione smiled as she wiped away the tear tricking down her face. "I'll do that, Hagrid. Thanks a lot. For everything."

"Don' mention it." Hagrid said, giving Hermione one more hug. As he went to stand up, he dropped the cup of tea in his hand, then watched it fall and crash onto the hardwood floor, the tea spreading in every direction. Hagrid grinned, bashfully. "Fang! I got a task fer yeh!"

Hermione smiled once more, internally deciding that yes, she would talk to Draco; after all, what did she have to lose?

"Fucking Ace." Draco muttered, pacing around the empty atrium of SPEW. He had slept on the comfortable, two-seated sofa in the entrance and his sleep had not gone dreamless. His dream involved only Hermione and Ace; they were about to be wed before Dumbledore and all of their friends, and both seemed happier than they had ever been in their entire lives. It was enough to literally make Draco sick. "He's going down. He is _so _going down."

"Draco." A sharp, harsh voice called. After a few moments of wondering who had spoken, Draco finally clued in. He reached deep into his pocket and withdrew a small mirror. Instead of showing his own reflection, it showed his mother, Narcissa's.

"Yes, mother?" Draco asked, obediently.

"How did your first night go?" She asked, getting right down to business. "Have you found a way to destroy SPEW, yet?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "I haven't even been released for twenty-four hours and you're already badgering me, mother."

"I'm just asking!" Narcissa exclaimed, defensively. "The sooner we get this done, the better. Oh, and guess what?"

"I don't like guessing games." Draco said, grumpily.

Narcissa grinned, not allowing her son's negative attitude to get in her way. "I've spoken with the Parkinson's."

"Ooh, goody." Draco replied, sarcastically.

"You know, I'd have thought that you'd be more respectful to the person who got your ass out of jail." Narcissa snapped, angrily.

Draco sighed. "You're right. I just had a tough night, that's all. So, what about the Parkinson's?"

"We've sorted out all of the details, and we've arranged to have you wed to Pansy! Isn't that wonderful!" Narcissa gushed, thrilled at her own news.

Draco was at a loss for words. Completely speechless. She must have been kidding. _Must _have been. "I'm sorry, what?" Draco said after a few moments had passed. Yeah, she had spoken wrong. It was all a misunderstanding.

"You're going to marry Pansy!" Narcissa exclaimed. "The Malfoy's are going to stay pure! I'm just so ecstatic!"

"Mother, I'm not marrying Pansy." Draco said. No way would he marry Pansy.

"Oh? And why not?" Narcissa asked in a dangerous tone.

"Because... because then our plan wouldn't work." Draco replied, thinking quickly. "I need to be acting as Hermione's boyfriend in order to get into top-security things at SPEW. This was your plan, mother."

"Well, that's fine." Narcissa said, disgusted at Draco for saying the mudblood's first name. "You and Pansy will marry after this whole awful ordeal is over. After SPEW has been destroyed. After the mudblood is cowering in iciness alone beneath a bridge on a bitterwinter's night with only a garbage bag to wear. And you mark my words, son, that day will come soon enough."

"Mother, please, I-"

"You what?" Narcissa interrupted in a deathly quiet tone. "Don't you dare defy me, boy. You and Pansy _will_ marry. The Malfoy's _will _remain pure. And that bitch _will _go down. I am Narcissa Malfoy. I get what I want, and if you want to step in my way or try and foil my plans, then you will go down, as well. Do you understand me?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Draco could see Hermione walking towards the building. Walking towards him. "I've got to go, mother. Someone's coming. Good-bye." Without waiting to hear his mother's reply, Draco stuffed the mirror back into his pocket, then smoothed his hair and attempted to make himself look half-decent in the short time that it took for Hermione to get from where she was to where Draco was.

"Hello, Draco." Hermione said as she entered the SPEW Headquarters. She looked weary and exhausted, as though she hadn't slept all night.

"Hey. Where've you been all night?" Draco asked, getting straight to the point.

"Not here." Hermione answered, shortly. "Look, Draco, I'm thrilled that you're back, I really am. But I can't have you doing this. Ace is an employee for SPEW, whether you like it or not; he's here to stay and I would really appreciate it if you'd just _attempt _to be civil with him, especially if you're going to be around here a lot."

"I actually wanted to talk to you about that." Draco interrupted, changing the subject. "I would also like to work for SPEW. I have nothing better to be doing, and if I were to work here than you and I could be together every day. Hell, I can even move in with you."

Hermione's eyes lit up; Draco's idea could not be more perfect! As angry with Draco as she was about the night before, Hermione still loved him deeply and she would have loved nothing more than to be with him every day and every night for the rest of her life. Draco, on the other hand, had absolutely no wish to work in that god-forsaken place. He still believed that house-elves were only good as servants, and he had no wish in promoting their existence as superior, useful magical creatures. However, it was the only way that he could remain out of Azkaban. He needed to find something – _anything – _that would demolish SPEW. Draco hated to do it, but he had to for his freedom.

"That's brilliant, Draco!" Hermione exclaimed, thrilled at the suggestion. "Just brilliant! SPEW could use some help, too. I was looking into hiring more people, since there is still a few months left before Ron and Harry and everyone else can come and work full-time. Your help would mean the world to me! And we'd get to live together! How incredible is that?"

"We've done it before." Draco noted, not seeing why Hermione found this so exciting.

"Yeah, but that was different. Things are going to be perfect, Draco, you wait and see!"

Draco cleared his throat, a surge of guilt washing over him. "So…um, what would I be doing?"

"Hmm," Hermione thought. "Whatever you want, I suppose. There's pretty much every position available with the exception of president and vice president. Actually, you know what? You can be president with me!" Hermione's eyes grew wider as her idea began to form in her head. "We can run SPEW together! You and me, presidents of a major business corporation! Would you have ever thought that to be possible?"

Draco grinned, thinking that Hermione's enthusiasm was absolutely adorable. "No, I wouldn't have. But I would love to run SPEW with you, Hermione."

A lump began to form in Hermione's throat, because she was so incredibly happy. But then a thought crossed her mind. "You'll be fine with Ace, right? And Ron, and Harry?"

Draco tried not to make a face or a rude remark; instead, he said, "Yes, I'll be fine with them. Don't you worry about it. Like you said, everything is going to be perfect. Just like you."

Hermione blushed. She walked towards Draco and slid her arms around his neck. "I love you." She whispered, before pulling him into a deep, luscious kiss. She pulled away and hugged him; thankfully, she could not see Draco's incredibly guilty look. He was lying directly to her face, he planned on destroying SPEW, _and_ he was set to marry Pansy Parkinson. Hermione was not going to be too thrilled with him if she ever found out any of this.

……………………………….

"There must be something here." Draco murmured, sifting through the piles of parchment spread out on Hermione's desk. It was after midnight, and Hermione was sound asleep in the penthouse that she and Draco now shared. Draco, on the other hand, was not. He had already begun searching for anything that would puncture SPEW, if only a little bit. His goal was to find something that would harm SPEW only enough that it would be in the Daily Prophet, but not enough that Hermione could not work it out and have SPEW standing back on its feet. However, so far, he had no luck whatsoever. He wasn't expecting to, of course; after all, SPEW was not even officially established. All he could find were ideas, written and drawn, but nothing that would substantially impact SPEW.

"Ace!" Draco cried, then slammed his hand over his mouth and silently cursed himself for being so loud. _Ace, of course! He _must _have something that will create havoc for this stupid corporation! _Grinning maliciously, Draco strolled across the room and made his way down the long corridor until he reached the vice president's office. He reached for the door handle and turned it, then quietly pushed it open only an inch so that he could peek in to make sure that Ace was not present. Draco did not expect him to be, since it was well after midnight, but all the same, it was better to be safe than sorry. Since Ace was nowhere in sight, Draco pushed the door all the way open and strode inside, not stopping until he came to rest at Ace's desk. It was covered in advertising ideas for SPEW, some pictures in color and some in black and white. _Not bad, considering they're drawn by someone whose brain is half the size of a pea_, Draco thought. He then smirked at his spur-of-the-moment insult before rummaging through the advertisements to see if there was anything underneath them that may have come in handy to him.

"Nothing." Draco muttered, picking up the advertisements and throwing them back down on the desk. He sunk into Ace's chair, incredibly angry with himself for allowing his mother and Fudge to force him into betraying Hermione so cruelly and callously. It was sick. Just plain, disgustingly sick. Draco stood up, ready to leave and completely forget about the bargain between himself and his mother and the Minister for Magic. He just couldn't do it, not to the woman who he was in love with.

As he went to leave, he caught flicker of light in the corner of his eye. He turned and saw a dark cabinet in the far back of the office; the office was so dark and shadowed that Draco did not even notice it. The light began to grow even brighter, and Draco walking towards the cabinet was proof that his curiosity had gotten the better of him. He reached out to pull the doors open, but they were locked. Sighing, Draco took out his wand and muttered, "Allohamora". The doors unlocked, and inside were two shelves; one held a sheaf of parchment, and the other held something that Draco's parents used to own before his father died. His mother had been so tragically distressed and enraged at his father's death that she had thrown it across the room and smashed it to pieces. It was a Pensieve. Draco had never taken any interest in it or in its brightness, and he was not about to begin now. Who cared what Ace's thoughts and experiences were? Certainly not Draco. Instead, he focused on the sheaf of parchment that lay on the shelf above the Pensieve. He pulled it out and began sorting through it, and with each passing parchment his eyes grew wider and wider. The first was a terrible, juvenile drawing of the SPEW building burning with a stick-figure that definitely resembled Ace floating above the building with his wand out and aimed at it, laughing hysterically. The second was a list of things that Ace hated about SPEW, numbering from one (house-elves are meant to serve wizards and witches and nothing else) to twenty-eight (Fucking Malfoy's gonna get a job). Draco dropped his jaw; obviously, Ace had been there and updated the parchment recently, since he only found out about Draco's return the day prior. Flipping through the remaining parchment, Draco had a huge grin on his face. This stuff was gold. This was what was going to allow him to finally be free. Free of Azkaban forever, but also free of Ace. Preparing to shove the parchment into his pockets, Draco had a sudden thought. _She's going to hate me forever after this. There's no way I can hide it from her. _Of course, he already knew that he would be in the doghouse with Hermione if he were to find any incriminating evidence, but now that he had it, it was a guarantee. Hermione would never speak to him again. SPEW was obviously her new baby, and Draco presenting the Minster for Magic with Ace's coarse drawings would have been basically ripping SPEW from her grasp. Draco could actually picture Hermione's expression once she discovered that it was he who had done it, and he knew that their relationship would be over.

Sighing once more, Draco decided to return the sheaf of parchment to its original place. _If SPEW is going down, it's not going to be me who is the cause of it, _Draco thought. Perhaps he would show Hermione the drawings and list, if only to get Ace in some serious trouble. She couldn't fire him, but Draco was sure that she would think of some creative way to punish him. Nonetheless, for now Draco decided to just leave everything as it was and go to bed a happy man in love with the perfect woman. It was all that his conscience would allow him to do.

As he went to close the cabinet doors, however, he once again caught something out of the corner of his eye. Swirling in the Pensieve was Hermione, hard at work in her office. Curious as to why Hermione would be in Ace's Pensieve and what kind of situation they could have been in, Draco put both hands around the rim of the basin and peered in. She looked so focused but lost at the same time, as though she was so unsure about the work before her but determined to complete it. After a few moments, Ace walked into the room where Hermione was working. Draco stared harder; suddenly, it felt as though a brick had dropped to the bottom of his stomach. Something was not right about this. It looked like nighttime, so what was Ace doing there? He and Hermione began exchanging words, and their conversation looked serious. Hermione looked sympathetic, and Ace looked rather anxious. At that moment, Draco's fears were confirmed; Ace had pounced on Hermione and drawn her into a luscious kiss, and Hermione did not protest. Instead, they fell onto her desk and began to kiss even more passionately. Draco watched on; he did not want to, but his eyes could not move away. He felt nothing inside. Absolutely nothing. Hermione and Ace stopped kissing, and Hermione looked panicked. Ace then disappeared, and not even two minutes after he Apparated, Draco himself appeared in the Pensieve.

It was talking place the day before. The day he returned. Two minutes before he had confronted Hermione, she was making out with that good-for-nothing, piece-of-shit scumbag. An intense anger suddenly rose in his chest. It was an anger that he had only felt one time before, and that was the moment right before he had stripped Will of his life. Before he knew what he was doing, he picked up the Pensieve and thrashed it against the wall, causing it to smash to the ground in pieces and the silvery substance to spill onto the floor. How _dare _Hermione do that? How dareshe make out with such a foul _thing _like Ace when Draco was rotting away in Azkaban, longing only for her? How _dare _she? Draco kicked the cabinet door so hard that it swung off one of the hinges, not to mention cause a searing pain to shoot through his foot. Wanting to throw something else, Draco reached for the first thing in sight: the sheaf of parchment. The small thing that could have destroyed SPEW. Grinning menacingly, Draco picked it up and stared at it. "Want to feel what it's like to have a knife in your back, Hermione?" He said, talking to no one in particular. His eyes were red and burning, and it was obvious that he was trying not to cry. Who would have thought that anyone could actually cause Draco Malfoy to cry? Crying was like bleeding. No one made Draco Malfoy bleed, and certainly not cry. No one. Draco shoved the parchment in his pocket and kicked the cabinet door one more time, causing it to fall off altogether. One thing was for sure: he wasn't sleeping in the same bed as Hermione that night. He couldn't even stand to look at her. If he did, God only knows what he would do. Hermione and Ace were going to pay for fucking around with Draco Malfoy, that was certain.


	37. The Truth Comes Pouring Out

The Truth Comes Pouring Out

_Knock, knock!_

Startled, Hermione looked up from her desk where she was busily brainstorming various ways to convince witches and wizards that house-elves were useful to the community. Standing in her doorway was Ace, smirking as always.

"You rang, master?" Ace asked, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed.

"Yes. I wanted to speak with you for a moment." Hermione said, shortly. "Close the door, please."

"Ooh, close the door, huh?" Ace asked, winking at her and unfolding his arms. Hermione had her serious business voice on, so obviously it was not what Ace was thinking.

"Don't be thick." Hermione shot back. "I wanted to speak with you about Draco."

"The dick?" Ace asked, innocently. "What about him?"

"I have offered Draco a joined partnership with me, so both of us will be CEO of SPEW." Hermione informed, feeling rather pleased inside because she was well aware that Ace would not approve.

"What?" Ace exclaimed, unsurprisingly angry. "You can't do that! There are two high positions in a business, Granger. Those positions are Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer. You are CEO, I am COO. Bottom line. There is no 'joined partnership', or whatever the hell it is that you call it."

Hermione sighed, even though she was already prepared for Ace's pointless argument. "Exactly, Ace. I am CEO, which means that I can do whatever the hell I want. If I want another CEO, than I can get one."

"Well if I knew that you were doing that then I would have demanded that position!" Ace cried, whining like a five-year-old boy whose mother took away his lollipop.

Hermione grinned internally as satisfaction washed over her. Good, Ace was upset. Maybe he'd quit. "Yup, but you didn't know, did you? You demanded vice-president, COO. Your loss, not mine."

Ace, feeling that this was nearly a lost cause, decided to take a different approach. "Speaking of Draco Malfoy, I seem to feel a slight pang of guilt every time I'm around him. Perhaps it would be best if I informed him of what went on between the two of us. What do you think?"

Hermione opened her mouth to reply, and then shut it instantly. What a prick! How dare he use that against her, especially in a work-related issue! "Ace, you had better drop that. It was a mistake. A huge mistake on my part, and I'm sorry that it ever happened. I wish it didn't, but it did."

Hermione's apology felt like a knife in Ace's heart. As much of an asshole as he was, his feelings for Hermione were genuine. She was beautiful, intelligent, and independent, so why wouldn't he like her? And as much as he told himself that it didn't, that kiss meant a lot more to him than he let on. Ace straightened up, not wanting Hermione to take his hesitance as a triumph. "Exactly. It did happen. And that guilt is just going to snowball until I can't take it anymore. I honestly think it would be best if we came forward with our illicit actions." Ace grinned a phony, sarcastic grin, which told Hermione that Ace was full of shit and that he was not guilty at all; in fact, he looked as though he took pleasure in seeing Hermione suffer because of the situation.

"Guilty, my ass!" Hermione cried, feeling helpless. "Ace, Draco will never forgive me. He's thrown into Azkaban and I'm making out with a jerk! Come on, how does that look? Seriously, you need to keep this quiet."

"And why should I?" Ace asked, folding his arms across his chest once more. "Not only have you used me for my money, which is fine because I offered my services in the first place, but you also used me as your little play toy because the honey-bunny wasn't around. You've basically treated me like dirt, Granger. And now you just expect me to do as you say?"

"You came on to me!" Hermione cried, outraged at Ace's erroneous accusations.

"No I didn't." Ace replied. He turned his back to her and walked towards the door; however, before he left, he turned around and said, "You came on to me."

Hermione's jaw dropped as he closed the door and disappeared from sight. He was going to lie and say that she had come on to him. Oh god, he was going to destroy her life. That _prick! _Hermione couldn't let it happen. She couldn't let him take Draco away from her, not again. Hermione's bottom lip began to quiver, and soon enough tears began to slide down her cheeks. Feeling so incredibly helpless, Hermione wrapped her arms around her legs and wept, terrified about what was to come if Ace followed through with his threat.

…………………………..

On the other side of Hermione's closed office door, Ace's head was dropped in his palms. _What am I doing? _He asked himself, confused beyond words. _It's not my life mission to ruin her life! So why does it seem like that's exactly what I'm doing? _

"Problem, McGonagall?" A familiar voice drawled.

Ace lifted his head from his hands, only to see the person who he despised most at that moment. Draco Malfoy. This was his opportunity to tell Draco about the kiss. This was it. _Do it, Ace, _he told himself, trying to boast his own confidence.

Draco, on the other hand, was disgusted beyond belief. All he wanted to do was reach out and wrap his hands around Ace's neck as tightly as he possibly could until Ace could breathe no more. If Draco had hated Ace before, it was nothing compared to the hatred that he was feeling at that moment. That –_thing –_had been with Hermione only moments before Draco's return. That _thing _had touched _Draco's _girlfriend in a manor that did not involve a simple, business handshake. It made Draco want to be sick, and he wished nothing more than to sucker punch Ace right in the face and then perform the Avada Kadavra curse just like he had done it on Will. Sighing, Draco closed his eyes. That was a lie; Will's death was probably the thing that he most regretted in all of his life, and it was torture having to live with it on his conscious. He did not need another death right beside Will's, that was for sure.

"Go fuck yourself, Malfoy." Ace said, tired of playing games with Draco's mind and certainly not up for it at that moment.

"I'm in no mood to fuck with anything, especially not myself." Draco replied. "You sicken me, you know that?"

Ace smirked. "Honestly, I don't really care. I don't need the respect of some seventeen-year-old punk."

"Punk? _Punk?_I think I've proven myself to be much more than a punk, you stupid sack of dung."

"Oh, really?" Ace asked, his eyebrow raised. "Killing someone and being thrown into Azkaban is proving yourself? If that's what it takes, then I never want to prove myself to anyone. You should still be locked up in that cell and you know it. God only knows why they let you out."

"No, Fudge only knows why they let me out. And thanks to you, I'll get to stay out. Good day, fucker." Draco said, shoving past Ace and opening the door to Hermione's office. Inside, he found her crying at her desk, but felt absolutely no pity for her.

Hermione lifted her head to see Draco enter her office. "Draco!" She exclaimed, taken aback. Her face was blotchy and tear-stained and her eyes were still brimming with tears; to Draco, it was almost pathetic to see her attempting to hide the fact that she was crying. What had just happened? _Her "boyfriend" probably just broke up with her, _Draco thought to himself, feeling no remorse for her at all. Maybe this wasn't such a great idea, after all. It was too soon, Draco just wasn't ready for this.

Draco turned to leave, but before he could get out the door, Hermione said, "Draco? Please, don't go."

Draco closed his eyes and sighed. He must have looked like such a prick; he walks in on his girlfriend crying and just turns to leave right away afterwards. _Wait a minute, you're not the prick, she is! _Draco told himself. Ooh, she was playing the guilt card very well. Well, Draco would not give her the satisfaction. She was the bitch in the relationship, not him.

"What?" Draco asked, coldly.

"I… I just need you right now, that's all." Hermione sniffed, a bit taken aback that Draco was being so rude when clearly she was in a great deal of pain.

"Why don't you call Ace back?" Draco demanded, unable to control himself. "I'm sure he'd comfort you."

Hermione opened her eyes widely and disbelievingly. Her voice shook as she said, "Did Ace tell you?"

Draco's face changed from angry to incredulous. "No! I can't believe you, Hermione! You fuck around with some asshole while I rot away in Azkaban, and I had to find out from some stupid Pensieve. A fucking Pensieve!" Draco punched the wall, leaving a large hole and causing Hermione to jump at his sudden, rash action.

_So he knows, _she thought to herself, her bottom lip trembling as she tried with all of her might to not cry again. Crying would just make things worse. She got herself into this mess, and she would have to get herself out in a mature, adult way. Of course, Draco's anger did not help at all.

"Draco, please," Hermione whispered. "It was an accident. I didn't mean for it to happen, I swear."

Draco's incredulous look transformed into a look that clearly said Hermione was full of shit. "I don't give one fuck more than another if you meant for it to happen or not! It did, and it was sickening to watch! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to not beat the shit out of that fucker out there?" Draco asked, pointing his thumb in the direction where Ace was only moments before.

"Please, don't be angry." Hermione pleaded. "It will never happen again, I promise. It was a _mistake_."

"I DON'T CARE!" Draco shouted. "I WAS IN AZKABAN PINING FOR YOU AND YOU WERE FUCKING AROUND WITH _HIM?_"

"It's your fault that you were in Azkaban!" Hermione cried. "You're the one who up and decided to commit cold-blooded murder! I can't even understand why you're out of Azkaban!"

Draco glared at Hermione, almost too livid to speak. How _dare _she bring that up? It was bad enough that she threw it in his face every chance that she got, but to do it now when it was _he_ who was furious with _her_? "You can burn in hell, Granger. And to think that I was actually going to spare my own sanity for you and your thick, brainless _spew_."

Draco did not say another word, nor did he wait for Hermione to say anything. Instead, he turned on his heel and left the office, not bothering to give her a second glance. The moment Draco had disappeared from sight, Hermione broke down. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she dropped to the floor, her entire body shaking. She had never cried so hard, except for the time when she realized Draco had left her for what she thought was forever. Maybe this was the same situation. Draco had left her once more. Possibly for forever, this time.


	38. The Daily Prophet

The Daily Prophet

"I'm sure it's not as bad as you say it is, Hermione." Ron comforted, rubbing Hermione's back as she sobbed like mad.

"Yeah, things will get better." Harry said, shifting his feet uncomfortably. Neither Ron nor Harry were any good at comforting anyone, but they were willing to give it their best for Hermione. However, nothing seemed to be working. She was just plain miserable.

"'Not as bad as I say it is!'" Hermione wept, wiping off the trail of tears from her cheeks with the back of her sleeves. "What do you mean, 'not as bad as I say it is'? It's awful! I've lost everything! I've lost school, I've lost Draco, I've lost everything! All I have is SPEW, and that's not even looking very optimistic!"

"Why not?" Ron asked.

"Because it's not!" Hermione barked, angry that Ron was heading off topic. "The point is that everything is just going downhill. What am I to do?"

Ron continued rubbing Hermione's back, unsure of what else to do. Usually, his mother would make tea in a situation like this, but Hermione didn't look like she wanted much tea at the moment. So, Ron was stuck with the same baffled, unsure face that Harry was. Both sent each other glances that clearly said _what now?_

Suddenly, there came a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" Harry cried, eagerly praying that the person on the other side of the door would be able to help out in Hermione's situation. The thing that was most difficult for both Harry and Ron to do was pretend that they were upset along with her, when the truth was that they were delighted that Draco was _finally _out of the picture.

Ace emerged into the room without answering Harry's question.

"Oh, come on!" Ron cried. "Can't you ever give us two seconds of peace?"

"We're in the middle of something at the moment, so if you'll excuse us-" Harry began.

"Something wrong with Hermione?" Ace interrupted, noticing Hermione bawling on her bed.

"Nothing you can fix." Ron answered.

"You've caused enough damage." Harry accused.

"We should throw him out." Ron suggested.

"Ooh, wouldn't that be fun?" Harry grinned, picturing himself tossing Ace out of the room and onto his ass.

"I'm standing right here, you know." Ace interrupted.

Harry and Ron both glared at Ace, then said in unison, "Go away!"

"No." Ace said, simply. "I want to know what's wrong with her."

"Like you don't know." Hermione managed to say through muffled tears.

"From the sounds of things, someone's let our little rendezvous out of the bag." Ace suggested. Ron and Harry both glared at Ace, which caused him to exclaim, "What! I didn't say anything about it!"

Hermione sighed and wiped away the tears from her eyes. "I know you didn't."

"So? If you don't mind my asking, how does everyone know?" Ace asked, curiously.

Harry and Ron both stood up at the same time and stood in front of Hermione, as though blocking her from sight so she would not need to see the horrendous creature that was Ace.

"I suggest you leave now." Harry advised, warningly.

"Yeah, Hermione doesn't need to deal with the likes of you at the moment." Ron added.

"The likes of you?" Harry asked.

"I read it in a book once." Ron answered, sheepishly.

"Have you always wanted to say it?" Harry questioned.

"Yes! How did you know?" Ron grinned.

"Lucky guess." Harry said.

Ace craned his neck over Harry's shoulder so that he could see Hermione and give her a _you'd rather have these two around then me? _look.

Hermione rolled her eyes and said, "Harry, Ron, can you please give Ace and I a moment alone?"

Harry and Ron's eyes both widened with shock, and Harry said, "Hermione, I really don't think you should be dealing with _him _right now. What you need are a couple of friends who aren't going to give you any trouble, and Ron and I seem to be the only two who fit that profile."

"Please, you guys? I really need to speak with him." Hermione insisted.

"Fine." Harry said, bitterly.

"Yeah, fine." Ron agreed, mimicking Harry's tone.

"Send an owl the moment you need us." Harry ordered.

"Send the one with the red under its beak!" Ron exclaimed, excitedly.

Everyone, including Ace, stared at Ron's random outburst.

"What?" Ron asked, the color in his cheeks reddening to match his hair as he grinned, sheepishly. "I like that one."

"I'll send that one." Hermione said, half-sarcastically and half-seriously so that he and Harry would leave. "Bye, you two."

"Bye, Hermione." Both boys said in unison before they disappeared into thin air. The moment they were gone, Hermione rounded on Ace. "Well, what do you want? You've already ruined my life enough, and now you're here to rub salt in the wound? Is that is? Make this your last little speech, Acelio, because after this I want nothing to do with you."

"First of all, you don't have much choice in that matter, seeing as I work with you under a contract." Ace pointed out. "And secondly, I'm assuming you haven't read this?" He picked up that morning's edition of the Daily Prophet that lay on Hermione's bedside table and handed it over to her.

"No, I haven't." Hermione said, taking the Daily Prophet and shaking it out so that she could clearly see the front page. And what a front page it was! She gasped as she read the title. In big, bolded words, the Daily Prophet read: _What Could Have Turned Out To Be One of the Biggest Scams in History! SPEW, Hermione's Granger's Latest Swindle!_ Shocked and at a total loss for words, Hermione read on.

_It was only a little while ago that Hermione Granger's name was last seen in the Daily Prophet, as she was the main cause for the death of William Tompkins, son of Warren and Estella Rose Tompkins. Will was murdered recently by Draco Malfoy, son of the infamous and deceased Lucius Malfoy and his wife Narcissa, and it was said that there would have been no conflict had Granger not been involved. However, the public seemed to have taken William's death as an opportunity to shower Granger with sympathy and their condolences. Little did they know that it was just a scam in order to get attention, just as she did only three years prior by toying with the hearts of Harry Potter, defeater of He Who Must Not Be Named, and Viktor Krum, International Quidditch Player._

_Well, Granger is at it again! Only this time, she is toying with the gold of each and every witch and wizard with a heart, by means of her latest "creation", SPEW. _

_"I knew it was a bad idea from the start!" Cornelius Fudge, Minister for Magic stated outside of the Ministry at nine o' clock last night. "It was a shame that I did not see exactly how bad she intended for it to get earlier on. I'm glad we've been able to obtain the proof that we needed in order to put Granger's sick and evil twisted plan to rest."_

_Unfortunately, the proof that the Minister speaks of is not substantial enough to convict Granger, but it is certainly powerful enough to close down the SPEW foundation, which, at this point in time, has not even been officially opened to the public. _

_"SPEW was _such_ a moronic idea, I cannot believe that not one witch or wizard realized it for what it truly was," says Narcissa Malfoy, whose son, Draco, was a part of Granger's scam. "But I'm thrilled to know that thanks to the new piece of information found, gold will stay safely in the pockets of the witch or wizard who it belongs to." _

_The Minister for Magic plans to make a trip to the SPEW Headquarters today to discuss the official closing-down of SPEW with the President, Hermione Granger. Witches and wizards, you may rest at ease, for your gold is safe!_

"What the _hell _is this?" Hermione demanded, disbelievingly. "This is a joke, right? You've gone and gotten hold of a computer and printed it out just to terrify me, haven't you?"

"I don't even know how to use a computer." Ace said. He had been expecting Hermione to blame him in one way or another, but this time her accusations were right on target. After Ace had run into Draco in the corridor outside of Hermione's bedroom two days ago, he had headed straight for his office to try and get some work done. His jaw had dropped as he walked into an office that looked as though it had been trashed. His Pensieve was shattered in pieces on the hardwood floor, and the unknown, liquidly substance left a trail in every direction from the smashed bowl. Not only was his Pensieve destroyed, but the crude drawings that represented Ace's true feelings towards SPEW had disappeared. Now, Ace was a clever enough wizard to put two-and-two together. Draco had been snooping around his office for some unknown reason and had come across the Pensieve. Once he saw Ace's memory of his encounter with Hermione, he flipped out and tossed the Pensieve across the room, then took Ace's stack of parchment and left, not bothering to clean up after himself. _But why would he take the parchment? _Ace asked himself. Though, subconsciously, he believed he knew the reason. Draco took Ace's hate-filled drawings to use in his favor with Hermione.

But now that Ace saw that morning's edition of the Daily Prophet, he knew that Draco had taken the drawings straight to the Ministry and used them to get SPEW shut down. He made the Daily Prophet believe that Hermione and Ace's only intentions were to collect gold from magical citizens and then eventually run off with it, not bothering to do anything to actually help benefit the house-elves. _Would Draco intentionally hurt Hermione that much? _Ace asked himself, befuddled by this unexpected change in events.

So, for once in his life, Ace did the right thing. He told Hermione all of this, from Draco snooping around his office and finding the Pensieve and the sheaf of parchment, to Draco handing it in to the Ministry and deliberately putting SPEW out of business.

"No." Hermione whispered. "No, Draco wouldn't do that. He may be angry, but he isn't _that _angry. He would never do such a thing to me."

"Well, he probably thought that you'd never do such a thing to him. You and me, that is." Ace said, all-knowingly.

Hermione glared at him before comprehension suddenly dawned on her face. "YOU!" She exploded, an unexpected rage suddenly washing over her. "THIS IS ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT! WHY WOULD YOU CREATE SUCH AWFUL, INCRIMINATING PICTURES! WHAT THE HELL IS THE MATTER WITH YOU!"

"Can you blame me?" Ace exclaimed, angry that Hermione was upset with him rather than Draco, who was the true cause of the problem. "I _hated _SPEW! I despised it! Honestly, I think it is the most absurd, most ridiculous idea to ever cross the face of the earth! The only reason I gave you my gold is so that I could have a part of it and get to see you every day. Once I heard about the money issues that you were having and I realized that I could help in a way that would allow me to get to be with you twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, I thought it was just God's answer to my prayer."

Hermione studied Ace's rarely innocent, gloomy profile. "You're sick," She whispered after a few moments had passed. Then she fixed her voice back to its shrillness. "You're sick! You knew how much SPEW meant to me, and you're only here because of _me? Especially _after what you did to me last year, what ever made you think I'd ever remotely consider taking you back? I am in love with Draco, and you've gone and fucked that up because of your disgusting fantasies of being with _me! _Well, SPEWs over now, Ace, so you can pack up your shit and leave. I don't want anything to do with you anymore. Not at all. Get on with your life and never come and see me again."

"I'm being honest with you, Hermione!" Ace cried, shocked at Hermione's rude, abrupt behavior. "I've never been more honest in my life! I'm laying all the cards on the table right now, and all you can do is dismiss me? I think it's _my _turn to ask what the hell is the matter with _you_!"

Hermione sighed, confused beyond words. Why was this happening to her? Why was _all of this _happening to her? "I'm sorry, Ace, but I'm in love with Draco. As messed up as that may be right now, as angry with him as I may be right now, I still love him. I can't just throw that away."

Ace grinned slightly. "That rejection was much better."

Hermione smiled as well. "Well, I guess we've both lost everything, huh?"

Ace nodded. "Whose fault is all of this, anyway? Not just the Daily Prophet thing, but everything in general. Everything that's led up to us losing everything. Whose fault is it?"

Hermione took Ace's question into consideration, but did not come up with any answer. "I'm not quite sure. I think we've all played a part. Now it's our turn to patch everything up."

Ace nodded, as though trying to understand. "Good bye, Hermione."

Despite herself, Hermione pulled Ace into an embrace, almost sad to see him leave. "Good bye, Ace. Don't hurt yourself out there in that big, scary world."

Ace smiled. "Hey, I'm Acelio McGonagall." He said, before stepping out of Hermione's bedroom for what would probably be the last time ever.

…………………………………..

As much of a tragedy as SPEWs eradication was, Hermione was not as upset about it as much as she was about losing Draco. Fudge had visited her later that evening and of course rubbed his victory in her face, but Hermione managed to brush off his triumphant laughter and get through the remainder of his visit with at least half of her mind in tact. It actually wasn't too difficult, since the only thing she could focus her mind on completely was Draco.

SPEW was supposed to be a distraction from Draco being in Azkaban, so now that he was back, Hermione had realized that she had been getting a little too extravagant with the SPEW idea. Sure, she believed that house-elves should have their freedom, and she would still try to raise money for their benefit, but honestly! Obviously, they didn't want to be free, so what was the point in pursuing it? The only true thing that bothered her about the situation was that now the entire wizarding world believed her to be a gold thief. As if! Hermione Granger was one of the most brilliant witches on earth. She would earn gold her own way in the future, she didn't need to pilfer other people's gold. Hopefully, they would see that one day and get over the Daily Prophet's unfounded accusations. Until then, though, she would need to learn how to handle the issue at hand. Draco.

Hermione sighed, feeling trapped. At least Ace was gone. That was one interrupting factor that would interrupt no more. But it had been two weeks since Hermione's fight with Draco and she still had not heard one word from him. Technically, _she _should've been angry with _him; _after all, he had taken out a sharp knife and stabbed her in the back with it the moment he took Ace's drawings to the Daily Prophet. But she just couldn't be angry with him. All she wanted was to have him back, for things to be like they were before Hermione had ever been accepted to Belle Strait. Why was that such a horrible thing to ask after all that she had been through?

Suddenly, a petite, tawny owl soared into Hermione's open window and dove head-first into her bed. Hermione hadn't bothered packing up and leaving. Really, just because SPEW was terminated did not mean that the building was no longer hers. All she needed was a job; as long as she could keep up the payments, she could continue to live her life in what used to be the SPEW Headquarters as an outcast.

Hermione giggled at the owl, untying the parcel from his leg as she held him up. "Considering you're a Hogwarts owl, you're getting a bit lazy, aren't you?" The owl hooted in reply and Hermione smiled as she read the note on the parcel.

_Hermione,_

_Thought you might want to see this. Better to see it now than in a more inappropriate place. Ron and I will come and see you soon. _

_Love, Harry_

Confused, Hermione tore open the rather small box and pulled out the Daily Prophet. Her perplexity increased, and all she could wonder was why Harry and Ron would send it to her. Surely she was not on the cover again?

On the bright side, she wasn't. But what was scrawled in huge, bold letters across the front page was even worse than any article about her. _Draco Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson say "I do" as their parents sigh with relief! Read inside for more details! _Hermione's eyes opened wide and her jaw dropped as she stared at the article disbelievingly. After a few moments, she hurriedly flipped the Daily Prophet open to the page of this absurd announcement.

_Okay, so maybe they haven't said "I do" yet, but the date has been set! On the 2nd of July, Malfoy and Parkinson will exchange vows that will certify their love for one another in front of over one thousand witches and wizards from across the globe. This is the first pure blood wedding in a decade, and needless to say, people are excited. _

_"I am so thrilled that Draco has decided to marry into a pure blood family," Narcissa Malfoy, the groom's mother, stated last night at the Ministry of Magic. "We Malfoy's were a bit worried for a while, what with the little Granger problem, but thankfully Draco has come to his senses and will be married to a lovely young girl." _

_The wedding will be taking place at noon in the heart of Hogsmeade (known famously to be the only all-witches-and-wizards town in all of Great Britain), and both families agree that only pureblood's may attend. This will be the wedding of the year, folks! Don't miss it!_

Hermione dropped the Daily Prophet, then slowly descended onto her bed. For once, no tears fell. They did not even attempt to push their way out. The 2nd of July was tomorrow. Draco was getting married tomorrow, to none other than Pansy Parkinson. She shivered as she finally realized that this was the final seal. Hermione had lost. She had not only lost Hogwarts and SPEW, but she had lost Draco, for good this time.


	39. The Most Spectacular Wedding of All Time

The Most Spectacular Wedding of All Time

**9:00am – 3 hours left until the ceremony.**

"Professor Dumbledore!" Hermione shouted from her position outside of Dumbledore's office. The gargoyles were devoted to not allowing Hermione entrance, no matter how much she wanted or needed to speak with the Headmaster. Obviously if there was a student at Hogwarts at nine o' clock in the morning the day after everyone went home, then it was probably important. "Professor Dumbledore! Please, I need to speak with you!"

The circular staircase began rotating, and sure enough Dumbledore soon appeared. "Miss Granger, what a surprise!" Dumbledore said, warmly. "Please, come in."

Hermione smiled gratefully as she followed Dumbledore into his office. His bureau looked the same as it always had, with the exception of new artifacts and trinkets littering every inch of every surface.

"You caught me at an excellent time; I was just getting ready to depart." Dumbledore said, smiling. "Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Professor Hagrid and I are vacationing in Bora Bora during the summer. Since Voldemort is no longer present, it is not necessary for us to remain here. Personally, I could do with a relaxing vacation."

Hermione resisted the urge to laugh at the sudden image of her professors sunbathing along a beach in Bora Bora, each with a smudge of suntan lotion on their noses and turning in unison every thirty minutes at the sound of a buzzer. "Er, Headmaster, I was wondering if I could speak with you about returning to Hogwarts next year to complete my seventh year."

Dumbledore looked solemn for a moment before his usual smile returned. "Yes, I saw the article in the Daily Prophet. I knew immediately that once again they had been erroneous."

Hermione nodded. "That was not my intention. I would never attempt to pilfer gold from anybody!"

"I know, Miss Granger, I know. How are you handing the loss of your corporation?"

Hermione laughed sadly. "I think the question is how am I handing the loss of Draco?"

"Yes, I saw that article too." Dumbledore said.

"If you and the rest of the professors are going on vacation, does that mean that you're not going to the wedding today?" Hermione asked.

"Actually, the wedding was going to be our pit stop." Dumbledore informed. "I cannot miss the wedding of two of my students, even if I do not agree with the circumstances."

"What do you mean?" Hermione asked, puzzled.

"I do not believe that Draco's heart truly consents to this wedding." Dumbledore explained, peering at Hermione over his half-moon spectacles. "But I am not the one whose opinion is important here."

Hermione remained quiet for a moment, knowing full well that Dumbledore was talking about her. After a moment, she whispered, "But there's nothing I can do, sir. Draco betrayed me and I've betrayed him. And now he's chosen Pansy Parkinson. Even if Draco did decide to not marry Pansy and come back to me, how could we base a relationship on betrayal?"

Dumbledore sighed. "For once, I am of no help. I think that this is something you must discuss with Draco."

"Yes, well Draco's getting married in three hours." Hermione said in a rather sarcastic tone. "So I don't think any heart-filled conversations are going to be happening any time soon. I'd better go. Good bye, Professor."

"Miss Granger?" Dumbledore called gently as Hermione turned to leave.

Sighing, she turned around to face her Headmaster. "Yes?"

"You always have a place at Hogwarts, and I look forward to seeing you on the 1st of September." Dumbledore informed, smiling.

Hermione beamed. "Thank you, sir. Have fun in Bora Bora."

……………………………….

**10:00am – 2 hours left until the ceremony.**

Dumbledore's trip to Bora Bora sounded wonderful to Hermione. Perhaps she'd go somewhere for a little while. Exploring Cuba or Canada sounded like such brilliant ideas; not only would she get to discover somewhere new and exotic, but she'd have a chance to get Draco off of her mind and hopefully move on with her life.

Suddenly, Pig, Ron's owl, flew into Hermione's bedroom window with a letter attached to his legs. Hermione rolled her eyes; if this was bad news, then she would just have to secure the shutters and bolt the doors of her house, refusing to come out until everything was perfect again. She freed Pig of the letter and opened it, grinning as she read.

_Dear Hermione,_

_Harry and I haven't heard from you in awhile. Hope you're alright. We thought you should know that we're going to the wedding today. After all, they said all pureblood wizards are welcome. Harry's close enough. We're planning on causing some serious sabotage_ _– spider in the punch bowl, house-elf in the cake, "accidentally" causing Pansy's dress to rip and reveal some very disturbing flesh – you know, the usual. We'll pop in on you when it's over and tell you how it went. Til then, lots of love,_

_Love, Ron and Harry_

Hermione laughed, picturing Pansy's high shriek as her very expensive wedding dress shred to pieces. Too bad Hermione couldn't be the one to do it to her. At least Harry and Ron would have some fun, though. And Hermione? She'd start packing. Cuba sounded very welcoming, so that's what she would do. Luckily, it would not be too expensive, seeing as she was of age to Apparate; a quick stop at Gringotts and the Ministry of Magic would accommodate the rest of her needs.

Hermione sighed as she took a long look around her bedroom. She had worked so hard to get there, and now all of that work had vanished with the print of a newspaper. But now she was ready to live her life as an outcast. It was time to move on and away from Hogwarts, at least until the start of the semester.

Meanwhile, Harry and Ron had just arrived in Hogsmeade. It reminded them of the Quidditch World Cup when they had stepped into the Ireland supporters land and were welcomed by various shades of green everywhere. In Hogsmeade, though, they had decorated the place with only one dark shade of green. The moment they had stepped in, they were greeted by the green plush carpeting leading up to the altar, with at least five hundred chairs on each side. Each chair had a snake engraved on the back, and the altar was actually one gigantic wooden snake curving to make a large semi-oval. Voldemort's Death Eaters would have been very proud.

Harry and Ron exchanged a look.

"We're not going to be allowed in, Ron." Harry stated. "Everyone knows who I am, and everyone knows that I am not on good terms with-"

"Hello, welcome to the Malfoy-Parkinson wedding." An usher greeted, grinning goofily. He was young and lanky; he looked only a couple of years older than Harry and Ron. "We are collected a fee of five galleons from each guest that will go towards the bride and grooms beginning of their new life. Would you like to donate?"

Ron looked revolted at the thought of giving them money. For one, Ron disliked them immensely, and two, they were rich! They already owned all of the gold in the world, so why were they trying to swindle their guests?

Harry stepped on Ron's foot so that he would at least try to act like a guest.

"Ow!" Ron cried, glaring at Harry.

"Yes, of course we'd like to donate." Harry said, retrieving ten galleons from his wallet. "Here you are."

"Excellent!" The usher grinned, storing the gold in his pocket. "Right this way, please."

He led Harry and Ron to two vacant seats surprisingly close to the altar, stamped their hands with a snake, then left them to go and assist the rest of the guests who were pouring into Hogsmeade for the wedding.

"The reception seems to be in the Three Broomsticks, eh?" Harry noted as he watched the arriving guests head towards the Three Broomsticks.

"Shall we go … er, _shake things up_ a little bit?" Ron suggested, mischievously.

"Definitely." Harry agreed, rising from his seat.

"Potter? Weasel?" A familiar voice cried from behind them.

Harry and Ron turned to see Draco standing behind them, thankfully without the company of his fiancée.

"Hello, Malfoy." Harry greeted, cheerfully. "Fancy seeing you here!"

"What in the name of the heavens are you two doing at my wedding?" Draco demanded.

"We figured we couldn't miss this." Ron piped up. "I mean, you were such close friends with our best friend. Hermione Granger, you remember her, right?"

Malfoy fell quiet, but continued to glare at the two of them.

"Oh, it's okay that we're here." Harry said, showing Malfoy his snake stamp. "We've been stamped."

"Don't ruin this day for me." Draco growled as he turned to leave.

"Eh! Malfoy!" Harry cried, causing Draco to turn around. Harry sighed, cursing himself for what he was about to say. "Hermione still loves you, you know."

Draco didn't say anything. He didn't glare at them, he didn't curse at them, he just remained silent before turning around once more and walking towards the Three Broomsticks.

"What the hell was that?" Ron demanded, hitting the back of Harry's head.

"Ow!" Harry exclaimed.

"That was payback for the foot thing." Ron explained. "Well? What was that?"

"I… I just thought he should know." Harry said, unsure of how to answer Ron's question.

"Well, he does now! Just shut up and let him and Pansy get married! They're perfect for each other." Ron said.

"Yeah." Harry agreed. "Let's go stir up some trouble."

……………………………….

**11:00am – 1 hour left until the ceremony.**

Pansy Parkinson had set up her bride's room in Dervish and Banges. In one corner of the store was her make-up area, and in another was her dressing area. Hanging on a rack in the dressing area was her dark green wedding dress, just waiting for Pansy to squeeze her abnormally large buttocks into it.

Pansy was sitting at her make-up table alone, staring at her reflection through a mirror. She grinned evilly, thinking about how beautiful she was and how much gold she was going to inherit through her marriage to Draco.

"Pansy?" A voice asked, sneaking up behind her.

She looked above her own reflection in the mirror to see Draco standing behind her, grinning rather oddly. Her face cracked into a grin as she stood up and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Drakey-poo! You shouldn't be in here! My wedding gown is in here!" She stood up immediately and grabbed Draco's upper arms, then spun him around so that his back was to her dress. Next, without warning, her pug-like face smashed into Draco's and began kissing him fervently, forgetting about the fact that technically, Draco shouldn't have been there. After a few moments, she pulled away and said roguishly, "What would you like, my wittle bitty baby-boo?"

"Uh, I just came to talk to you." Draco said with the biggest desire of spitting out Pansy's kiss. Instead of doing so, however, he created a chair with his wand and placed it beside Pansy's seat so that he was looking directly at her.

"Oh?" Pansy asked, batting her eyelashes. "What about?"

"About us." Draco replied. "Pansy, we're only getting married today because that is what our parents want."

Pansy looked shocked. "Don't you want it too?"

"Er… sure. But I just feel so young, you know? Maybe this isn't the best course of action that we can be taking at such a young age."

"I don't think we're young at all." Pansy countered. "In fact, I think we're of perfect age. This is our destiny, Drakey."

"But the last time that I saw you, you were furious with me!" Draco cried.

"Oh, I was just caught up in the heat of the moment. This is now, Drakey. We're meant to be. This wedding is perfect and it's going to be remembered for years to come, I guarantee it. Plus, we get to go to Mexico for our honeymoon!"

_Mexico_Draco thought. Suddenly, comprehension began to dawn on him. Pansy wasn't interested in marrying him! Sure, she was thrilled to become Mrs Draco Malfoy, and she probably worshipped the amount of jealousy that she would be getting from all of the other witches, but honestly! This was all about the gold and luxuries for her; there was absolutely no love involved. Lust, perhaps, but not love.

"I suppose I'll see you out there then, huh?" Draco said, jerking his thumb towards the altar.

"Oh, you will." Pansy purred, leaning over to lick Draco's ear. He shuddered, rather disgusted. This was supposed to be his wife. The women he was to spend the rest of his life with. All of a sudden, things seemed much, much more clear.

…………………………………..

**11:55am – 5 minutes left until the ceremony.**

While Draco and Pansy's wedding ceremony was about to begin, Hermione was far away at her home in Diagon Alley, where she had returned only minutes before. She had just been to Gringotts to pick up the remainder of her gold, and then to the Ministry of Magic to obtain a permit that allowed her permission to leave the country, but she had left her Witch ID back at the SPEW Headquarters and was required to return home and retrieve it if she had any hope of Apparating to Cuba that afternoon. The woman at the Ministry of Magic who had been serving her was very persistent in Hermione having her ID, and it had irritated Hermione greatly.

"Hello, may I help you?" The vivacious young brunette had asked Hermione. Her nametag read Joy. How ironic was that?

"Hello." Hermione smiled, pushing the sunglasses that were covering her eyes up her nose. She'd prefer not to be recognized as 'the girl who tried to steal everyone's gold'. "I'd like to get a permit allowing me to Apparate to Cuba."

"Cuba?" Joy cried, somewhat over-excitedly. "I've always wanted to go to Cuba! That's just so incredible! I'm sure you're going to have a swell time! Well, I'll just get right on that, then. May I please have your Witch ID?"

"My Witch ID?" Hermione repeated, suddenly answering her gut feeling that she had left something at home. "Er, I actually don't have that with me. I've left it at home. Would it be possible to get the permit without it?"

Joy frowned. She obviously took her job very seriously. "No, I'm sorry; you must have your Witch ID. We cannot just grant anyone permission to leave the country. What if you were Sirius Black or some other deranged criminal convict?"

"Sirius Black was not deranged! He was found innocent when Voldemort was defeated!" Hermione defended, suddenly growing angry. "And I'd appreciate it if you did not spit on his memory!"

Joy shrieked and looked as though she were about to pass out. "Don't speak his name!" She hissed, furiously. "And I'll believe what I want! Sirius Black murdered thirteen people; I don't care what the Daily Prophet says about him!"

"You didn't even know him!" Hermione cried. "So keep your fake nose out of things that you know absolutely nothing about! And by the looks of you, that's probably just about everything!"

Needless to say, Hermione had been booted from the Ministry of Magic and told that she could not return unless she had her Witch ID. So, she returned back home, throwing her wand down on the nearest table. She habitually checked the clock on the wall and her mouth dropped open; it felt as though a brick had plummeted to the bottom of her stomach as she realized that Draco was to be married in five minutes. She could not believe that he would actually go through with it. A small part of her had hoped that maybe, just _maybe, _he would back out of it. For all Hermione knew, he had. But she doubted it. Draco would not defy his mother, no matter how much he detested Pansy, and leaving Pansy alone at the altar was definitely defiant.

She had also pondered the idea of Apparating to Hogsmeade and putting a stop to the absurd wedding. However, she couldn't; not only would they not allow her entrance because of her muggle background, but she was terrified that Draco really was through with her; terrified that he would reject her before she even had a chance to say anything. So, she decided to remain where she was, as far away from Hogsmeade as possible.

Hermione began shivering, then decided that she'd wrap herself up with a warm blanket and take a quick nap before heading back to the Ministry of Magic. Hopefully by then, Joy would have changed shifts or something. She definitely did not need another confrontation with _her. _

At that exact same moment, the one thousand and five hundred witches and wizards who had shown up at Draco and Pansy's wedding in Hogsmeade had all been seated comfortable and were now waiting anxiously for the ceremony to begin.

Harry and Ron stood out vividly in the crowd, seeing as they were the only two who were not dressed formally or in dark colors. They did not let the glares bother them, though; they were both wizards, therefore they had the right to witness 'the most spectacular wedding of all time'.

Albus Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, and Hagrid were all lined up towards the back of the crowd. McGonagall, Flitwick and Hagrid were all chatting excitedly about their rapidly approaching vacation; Dumbledore, however, gazed avidly at the altar, a faraway look in his crystal blue eyes.

Narcissa Malfoy sat with Mrs Parkinson, both of the women already in tears, despite the fact that the wedding hadn't even begun yet. Narcissa, however, still had a malicious glint in her cold, dark eyes, which told everyone in the room who bothered to pay close attention that she had finally won the battle. The mudblood girl was out of the picture for good, and nothing could have made Narcissa happier for her son or for herself.

Cornelius Fudge stood only a few feet away from Dumbledore and the other Hogwarts professors, accompanied by the Daily Prophet crew. Obviously, he was expecting something extraordinary to happen, such as Hermione storming in and ruining the wedding. So, he had three photographers and Rita Skeeter with him, despite Rita's protests of returning to the journalism business. She had found a new love in flowers, and gardening had become her new hobby as opposed to writing. However, Fudge had offered to pay her generously, so she had no complaints as she pulled out her lying, deceiving quill from her familiar crocodile skin handbag and began to write furiously before anything had even begun.

Suddenly, the band, The Weird Sisters, began playing a sorrowfully happy tune. Pansy's younger sister suddenly emerged from Zonko's Joke Shop, dressed in a less fancy but closely identical version of Pansy's gown. She flung black roses onto the plush carpet, looking much more miserable than she should have considering it was her sisters wedding. Perhaps it was just a Parkinson thing.

Draco, who was already at the altar, rolled his eyes as he watched Pansy's sister make her way down the aisle. Crabbe, who had agreed to be Draco's best man, chuckled in his deep, stupid voice as he watched Draco.

"This is going to be incredibly long, isn't it?" Draco asked in a loud whisper as though he did not care whether he was overheard or not. He let out a huge yawn as Pansy's sister finally finished her route. Soon afterwards, Pansy's bridesmaids, all Slytherins, filed out from Zonko's, each wearing hideously revolting frilly pink dresses that looked completely out of place in the dark green setting.

Draco pulled out a hacky sack from his tuxedo pocket and began kicking it around with his foot, completely ignoring the horrified looks that he was receiving from all of the guests in the audience.

Finally, Pansy, accompanied by her father, emerged from Zonko's. The dark green wedding dress made her look like a cucumber, and her hair pulled back into a tight bun caused her face to look even more distorted than usual.

Draco snorted loudly at the sight of Pansy, which caused Crabbe and Goyle to both let out long, stupid laughs. Pansy's eyes widened in embarrassment, but she decided to ignore Draco's boorish performance and take it as a sign of his nervousness. She continued down the aisle; once she reached the altar, her father kissed her by bumping his large chin against her plump cheek before he took a seat next to Mrs Parkinson.

Draco could not keep a straight face as he looked at Pansy, so he settled for not looking directly at her. If he did, he would burst out laughing at how incredibly stupid she looked. Who had chosen the dress, anyway? Her mother?

The minister, also one of the most highly respected wizards in all of Great Britain, began the ceremony. His speech was boring and monotonous, and Draco did not bother to contain his yawning. Pansy attempted to look unbothered, but Harry and Ron could tell that she was trying to not cry. They almost felt sorry for her. _Almost._Draco's behavior was purely disrespectful.

The minister droned on and on, but Draco finally snapped out of his tired daze as he heard the minister say, "Do you, Pansy Parkinson, take this man, Draco Malfoy, to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

Pansy sniffed, still upset from Draco's rude behavior, but suddenly lit up as she realized that this was her moment. "I do!" She cried, grabbing Draco's hand and squeezing it tightly. Draco looked revolted, without even bothering to hide it, but he did not pull away.

The minister turned to Draco, and Harry and Ron both saw the dirty look that the minister had shot at him. Obviously he did not like someone, especially the groom, being so coarse during his service. However, he continued the service by asking the same question to Draco. "Do you, Draco Malfoy, take this woman, Pansy Parkinson, to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

Draco snorted once more, and many of the guests believed his snort to be provoked by the 'until death do you part' saying. Everyone glared at him with disgust. Still, Draco grinned at Pansy, taking her hand in his and turning her so that they were both facing all of their guests, hand-in-hand. "I do!" Draco exclaimed, falsely excited.

The minister smiled, despite Draco's unorthodox behavior. "Well then, by the power vested in me, and as witnessed by friends and family, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may seal your vows with a kiss."

Draco, who at that moment looked as though he had been waiting for that moment all evening, threw his hand around Pansy's waist and pulled her towards him, then dipped her and planted a wet, inappropriate, passionate kiss on her pudgy lips.

Once they separated, Pansy grinned, looking ecstatic. "We're married, Draco!" She cried. However, her excited grin did not stay plastered on her face for long; soon enough, her exhilaration began to transform into horrification, along with the rest of the audience. This was due to the fact that Draco's skin began forming moving lumps; as a matter of fact, he seemed to be getting taller. A bit chubbier, too. Pansy shrieked over and over again before she finally passed out underneath the snake-shaped altar, too unconscious to see what had become of her new husband.


	40. The Beginning of a New Era

The Beginning of a New Era

Hermione had not been able to sleep, no matter how tired she was. She was just too anxious. By that time, Draco would have been married already, which meant that any hope for the two of them reconciling was just a mere fantasy. Hermione could not get Draco and Pansy – looking incredibly smug together – out of her mind, so she simply decided to head back to the Ministry of Magic and receive the traveling permit so that she could finally, _finally _leave her horrible life behind her once and for all.

"Thank you." Hermione said gratefully to the new and kinder witch who had reinstated Joy at her position in the Department of Magical Transport.

The witch smiled. "You may have noticed several fireplaces along the corridor." She said, indicating the gorgeous, life-sized fireplaces surrounding them. "These are usually for witches or wizards traveling by Floo Powder, but we prefer that Apparater's also use them so that they are not in the way of anyone passing. If you could just use one of them, that would be great."

Hermione nodded. "All right. Bye, then." She slowly walked over to the furthest fireplace, so that she could have a moment alone with herself before leaving. She inhaled deeply, staring into the empty pit. This was it. She wouldn't be back in London for another two months, and who knew what could happen by then?

Her breathing was abnormally intense; Hermione took a large step into the brick fireplace. She had her permit clutched in one hand and her luggage in the other, both things feeling considerably heavier than they should have. She tried to clear her mind of Draco. Tried to clear her mind of everything that had been reeling through it since she had been assigned to the Head Boy and Girl dormitory with him. She envisioned beaches and palm trees, huts and exotic people, everything that she had seen in the books on Cuba in the Hogwarts library.

_I'm ready, _She thought to herself, knowing full well that she really wasn't. It was too late now, though. It was time to go.

"Hermione!" A voice cried.

Hermione's eyes widened with shock. Utter astonishment. It couldn't be, it just couldn't. He was a hologram. A mere vision of his true self. It was just her mind playing tricks on her; it had to be. But there he was, racing at top speed towards her. His white-blond hair flew all over the place as he ran, and even from a distance Hermione could see the determination in his gorgeous, gray eyes. It was no hologram. No vision. No trick. It was truly Draco; he was really there.

"Hermione, wait!" He exclaimed as he finally reached her. He extended his arm and took hold of her own, tightening his grip and never wanting to let go. Too late. Hermione had already been visualizing her desired destination; it was too late to turn back. _Pop! _She disappeared. But so did Draco. The travel receptionist looked bewildered for a split second before she shouted, "You don't have a permit, sir!"

………………………….

_Pop!_

Draco and Hermione both suddenly appeared out of nowhere at the bottom of a gigantic, eight foot outdoor swimming pool, much to their dismay. Their eyes opened widely as it took a moment for realization to dawn on them, but once it had, they let out a sudden burst of bubbles and kicked their legs as hard as the could until they broke through the surface of the pool. Young boys and girls glanced at them as they emerged, some in mini sailboats and others floating on the surface with nothing holding them there, but no one seemed shocked or amazed; obviously, Draco and Hermione had landed somewhere that was only witches and wizards.

Hermione flapped her arms wildly, attempting to stay afloat. "I… can't… swim!" She managed to shout while kicking her legs furiously. Draco couldn't help but grin as he swum over to her and placed both hands on her hips, holding her in place.

"I want out!" Hermione cried. "Let me out! I can't swim! I'm going to drown!"

A young wizard – possibly age eleven – rolled his eyes. "Well, you've just sucked the fun out of my swim." He muttered before taking off to the side of the pool and lifting himself out. The rest of the young witches and wizards glanced quizzically at Hermione and Draco before pursuing the boy and emptying the pool; obviously, they had landed themselves in a children's pool. Soon enough, it was only Hermione and Draco left in the center of the immense swimming pool, and Hermione was unwilling to settle down as she thrashed water in all directions, wishing most desperately to escape the vast waters.

"Calm down!" Draco cried over Hermione's shouting. He was still grinning. "We're going to swim over there, okay?" He asked, pointing north to an exit from the pool.

Hermione nodded vigorously, then decided to stop thrashing and just allow Draco to lead her to a way out. In a matter of seconds, Hermione's feet could reach the floor as they made their way into the shallow end of the pool. There were four steps leading in and out of the water; Draco took a seat on the third step, so that the water was just above his belly button. Hermione, both thrilled to be out of danger and confused that Draco was _right there_, did not know what to do; so, she did the only thing that her body and mind would allow her to do. She took a seat next to him.

"You ruined my Apparation." Hermione finally said after a few moments of silence. "I had expected to land in the lobby of this hotel, not square in the middle of the children's swimming pool."

"Sorry." Draco said. "Where are we?"

"Cuba." Hermione answered.

Draco whistled. "Cuba, eh? That's pretty far. What, may I ask, are we doing in Cuba?"

"Well, _I'm _vacationing." Hermione said. "Honestly, I have no idea what _you're _doing here. How did you know I was at the Ministry?"

"Dumbledore." Draco answered, simply. "He got word from an employee at the Ministry – Joy, I believe her name was – that you were requesting a permit to leave the country. Dumbledore informed me right away. I kind of took over from there."

Hermione was speechless. It was still hard to believe that Draco was with her, let alone the fact that Dumbledore had helped him find her. "But… but what about Pansy? The wedding? _Your _wedding?" Hermione stammered, so many questions forcing to make their way out.

"Oh, we got married." Draco said, grinning. "Well, kind of, anyways."

"What do you _mean?_" Hermione demanded, angrily confused. If he was a married man, then what was he doing there? Toying with her emotions intentionally?

"Pansy got married to who she thought was me. It's quite funny, actually. I wish I was around to see everyone's faces." Draco mused.

"Stop speaking in riddles!" Hermione cried, confused beyond belief. "Just tell me what happened!"

"Well, I had a visit from one of your friends today." Draco said, simply.

"Oh, no." Hermione sighed. "Which one? Harry or Ron?"

"Another one." Draco replied. "Make no mistake, though. Both of your – er, _friends ­_– were kind enough to show up at the wedding. I'm surprised they even got in. But no, the friend I'm talking about isn't Potter or Weasley."

"Who, then?" Hermione asked, inquisitively.

"McGonagall." Draco stated before inhaling deeply and preparing for Hermione's shocked expression.

"Ace!" Hermione exclaimed, baffled. "I thought he left for good! What did he want?"

"Well, he came during the reception. I don't think anyone else saw him; I don't even know how he managed to sneak in. The ushers aren't getting tipped, that's for sure. But anyway, he pulled me away for a moment and explained to me how much you love me, and how he was somewhat pleased that if he couldn't have you, at least you can have someone who will make you happy."

Hermione smiled as her eyes already began to brim with tears.

"And then he pulled out a flask." Draco continued, glad to see that Hermione was no longer in her angry phase. "My first instinct was that he was going to poison me or something. But no, it turned out to be Polyjuice Potion in the flask. You know, that transforming stuff that we learned about in Potions?"

Hermione nodded, remembering all to well about the magic of the Polyjuice Potion, but not able to say anything for fear that tears would just pour out relentlessly.

"He told me that he got it from Professor Snape. Well, apparently he got Professor McGonagall to hassle Snape for it. Luckily, Snape had a fresh batch on hold for a werewolf in London, but it had finished much earlier than expected, so Snape could afford the time to make another one. Anyways, Ace offered to transform into me and take my place down the aisle so that my mother would not know about my coming after you. If she had known, than I wouldn't have made it this far. I'm telling you, she's going to blow a fuse once she finds out."

Hermione laughed, but it came out nervous and shaky. "So Ace married Pansy?"

"If all worked out well, then yeah, he did. But it's illegitimate since it wasn't me, so they'll have to get an annulment." Draco explained.

"But then your mother will just badger you to marry her after this. It'll be endless, Draco. She's arranged your marriage to Pansy; I don't think she's going to be merciful towards me." Hermione said, sighing.

"Which brings me to my next topic." Draco said, grinning somewhat nervously for the first time since Hermione had met him. It almost made _her _nervous. "Look, Hermione, we've been through some tough shit in the last little while. Awful things keep happening, but we always manage to find our way back to each other in the end. That's why I'm here. I want – no, I _need_ you, Hermione. You're the light at the end of my tunnel; without you, it's bleak. I don't care about what happened with Ace, and I'm terribly sorry for what I did to you with the whole SPEW thing. But what we share is bigger than Ace or SPEW. It's bigger than anything I've ever felt before, and that's how I know that no matter what happens, it's going to last forever." Hermione opened her mouth to say something, but Draco held up two fingers to her lips. "Shh, please, just let me finish." He begged, feeling that now was the time to release everything that had been swelling up inside of him since the day he had been tossed into Azkaban. "Pansy was just a way out. The whole wedding was just a way out. It meant nothing to me, I swear. I couldn't go through with it because I couldn't imagine spending my life with anyone else but you. You're the only person I've ever been able to envision myself growing old with, and that's pretty damn rare considering I always envisioned being an old, rich man with a young supermodel on each arm." Hermione laughed shakily; a sudden, unexplained heat began to rise inside of her. Draco continued his speech. "Even though I'm not marrying Pansy today, my mother will hound me until the day that I say I do to her. There are three things that make a wedding impossible, though. One, if the bride or groom is underage. Two, if the bride or groom is a fraud. And three, if the bride or groom is already married." Draco inhaled deeply. "I promise you, I am _not _doing this to save my own ass. I am doing this because it's what I feel in my heart. When I think of you, my stomach churns and my heart flutters, and it's the best feeling that I've ever felt in my entire life. I never want that to go away. So, I'm going to ask you this one question, Hermione. We're seventeen years old, we don't have our lives planned out, and we've still got our seventh year at Hogwarts to finish. But I don't care, because we can do all of those things together. I _want _us to do all of those things together." Draco inhaled once more, preparing himself for the most difficult question that he would ever have to ask in his entire life. "Hermione, will you be mine? Will you marry me?"

Hermione stopped breathing. Her eyes widened in shock as she stared into Draco's eyes; for the first time since he had been out of Azkaban, Hermione did not even see a flicker of that dark, mysteriousness that they usually held. Instead, she saw joy and happiness, and to Hermione, it felt like a sign of what was to come in their lives. Joy and happiness. They could definitely use a bit of that. _But I'm so young! _Hermione fought with herself, silently cursing the side of her that lit up at Draco's proposal. _I'm not ready to get married! _Or was she? She had already organized what could have been a very successful incorporation, and she was only seventeen! She would have given her life for Draco's, and that to her was a sign that she was ready. Ready to commit to spending the rest of her life with him, no matter what complications lay on the road ahead of them.

The shock slowly faded away from Hermione's eyes, and it was replaced with an excited, ecstatic grin that caused Draco to smile as well. "Yes! Of course I'll marry you, Draco!" She cried, throwing her arms around his neck and causing them both to tip over and fall back into the water. They laughed as they broke the surface once more, hand-in hand.

Their faces were very close together. Draco could feel Hermione's light breathing; he liked to think of it as a blessing from the Gods. "I love you, Hermione." He whispered, gazing into her chocolate brown eyes.

Hermione beamed, tears sliding down her cheeks and plummeting into the dark waters. "I love you too, Draco." She replied, leaning in and touching her lips to Draco's for a soft, gentle kiss, as though sealing the proposal. For someone who was not known to be a romantic, Draco had just given Hermione the most romantic fifteen minutes she had ever had in her entire life, and now she had the rest of her existence to enjoy more moments like that one, with the man who she loved more than anyone else in the world. Could life possibly_ get _any better?

…………………………….

"That _imbecile!_Ungrateful little ingrate! Selfish, haughty buffoon! Nothing like his goddamned father! What a disgrace!"

Needless to say, Narcissa Malfoy was just one step above violently fuming and one step below near insanity. Much closer to the near insanity, though. She was seething as she paced around Dervish and Banges, spitting out insults about her son to Crabbe and Goyle, who innocently sat in a couple of chairs, still looking confused at what had happened during the ceremony. One moment, Draco and Pansy were exchanging vows, and the next, Draco had transformed into none other than Acelio McGonagall, Professor McGonagall's nephew. Crabbe and Goyle were just plain baffled, but Narcissa was furious. Pansy had been taken to Saint Mungo's, along with the rest of her incredibly outraged family; she had woken up, would not stop hyperventilating, and then passed out once more. A grinning Ace continued to explore the room for young, sexy ladies on Draco's side of the family, in hopes of a Malfoy-Granger-like relationship. And Draco and Hermione?

"Excuse me? May we have your attention?" Draco called as he and Hermione walked into Hogsmeade, hand-in-hand. Both had grins plastered across their face; they looked the complete opposite from everyone else in the room, with the exception of the Hogwarts professors who were all grinning as well.

Ron stood up in the crowd. "I knew it!" He cried from his place near the altar, where he had not moved from since the revealing of Ace as Draco.

Harry laughed, placing a hand on Ron's shoulder and gently lowering him back into his seat. Finally, _finally, _Harry understood.

"I'm glad to see that not everyone has left. Well, not everyone on my side, anyway. I think I owe you all an explanation, and that's exactly what I intend to give you." He glanced at Hermione, who was smiling up at him; she gave him strength, which was exactly what he needed at the moment. "Granger and I are in love. Not much of a surprise, but we are. I'm not marrying Pansy, and I'm sorry to bring you all here and have your hopes burn up in flames. But I would hate to deny you a wedding; so, I would feel honored if all of you would to stay and witness the wedding between Granger and myself."

Hermione's eyes widened as she glanced up at Draco, giving the guests some time to panic about what Draco had just told them. "We're doing it _now?_" Hermione asked, horrified. "What about my parents? My friends?"

Draco grinned, then turned around to look behind them. Standing in the entrance to Hogsmeade was Dumbledore, along with Hermione's parents and fellow Hogwarts buddies: Hannah Abbott, Neville Longbottom, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, Dean Thomas, and Seamus Finnigan.

"A wedding, eh?" Seamus called, winking at Hermione. Hannah looked near tears, and her mother and father were racing towards her.

"How did you-" Hermione began to say to Draco.

"I sent an owl to Dumbledore before we came." Draco answered, immediately. "You'd be amazed at how quickly he can get things done."

"Baby!" Hermione's mother exclaimed as she tossed her arms around Hermione's neck. Mrs Granger was bawling and squeezing her daughter so tight that she could hardly breathe.

"Hi, mom." Hermione managed to say once her mother loosened her grip a tad bit. "Hi, dad."

"What's going _on_?" Mr Granger asked, looking baffled. Mrs Granger, still crying hysterically, nodded as though she wanted to know the answer as well.

"Well, it seems as though I'm getting married today." Hermione answered, smiling. She wrapped her arm around Draco's and pulled him closer to the Granger reunion. "Mom, dad, this is Draco Malfoy."

Draco looked at a complete loss for words; he had no idea what he was supposed to do. He'd never been in a relationship before where he had to meet the parents, with the exception of Pansy whose parents he had known since he was just a baby. Furthermore, Hermione's parents were muggles. He'd spent his whole life campaigning against muggles, and now he was marrying into a family of them. His children would have muggle blood in them. He'd have to go to muggle reunions and learn the muggle ways. So, Draco did the only thing that he could think of. He extended a hand and said, "Nice to meet you, Mr and Mrs Granger."

The rest of the guests gave the Grangers and Draco a chance to chat, and by the time Dumbledore was ready to perform the ceremony, the Grangers had already fallen in love with Draco.

"Is everyone almost ready?" Dumbledore asked politely to Draco and Hermione.

Hermione grinned, but she no longer felt nervous. She was ready for this. No doubt. "Yes, I'm ready. I just have to change."

"Yeah, me too." Draco said.

"I'll see you guys up there." Mr Granger said, grinning. He punched Draco's arm. "Treat my baby girl right, you hear?"

Draco smiled. "I hear you, sir."

……………………………….

"Oh my god, what am I going to wear?" Hermione cried to herself in Dervish and Banges as she racked her brain for a beautiful dress. She had learned a spell in her sixth year that allowed her to wear whatever she desired, but the only problem was that she wasn't sure what she wanted to wear! She couldn't visualize a dress that was perfect enough to give herself away to Draco.

"Can we come in?" A voice called.

Hermione turned to see Harry, Ron, and Hannah enter the little shop. Hannah engulfed Hermione in a hug, and for once, Harry and Ron had nothing bad to say.

"This is what you're wearing down the aisle?" Hannah asked, her eyes shining bright with tears as she let out a shaky laugh. "Let's try something else, shall we?" Hannah raised her wand and cried, "Changify!"

Hermione's boring, traveling outfit suddenly changed into a gorgeous, snowy white wedding dress. Held up by spaghetti straps, jewels lined the top and bottom of the dress, which curved into a huge bell at Hermione's waist all the way down to the ground. She looked stunning; there were no other words for it.

"Hannah!" Hermione exclaimed. "It's beautiful!" She embraced her friend, then walked over to Harry and Ron. "Guys, I just want you to know that this doesn't mean anything. We're still going to hang out all the time, okay? Promise me that we will?"

Hannah walked over to Ron and took his hand. Harry grinned, then pulled Hermione, Ron and Hannah into a group hug. "Hermione, we wouldn't have it any other way."

…………………………………….

Once Harry, Ron and Hannah had been seated, Dumbledore stood up at the end of the altar. With a swift move of his wand, Hogsmeade turned into a beautiful, snowy wonderland. Not cold snow, though; just right. Every sign of snakes and darkness disappeared, which made the guests feel a bit cheerier. They were obviously getting impatient, but that was fine. The wedding would be worth it.

Music suddenly started playing from nowhere. It was an organ, but there was no organ in sight. The guests quieted down; the wedding was about to begin. Many were already crying, including Harry and Ron. Dean Thomas and Seamus Finnigan poked them in their backs from behind in a teasing manner.

Hermione suddenly appeared at the end of the red carpet, glowing in the gorgeous white dress that Hannah had created for her. The entire room gasped at her beauty, and her mother nearly passed out by all the crying that she was doing. Joyful crying, though. Hermione smiled at her parents and her friends as she walked down the aisle before she saw Draco standing at the front before all of them, grinning without a slight look of nervousness in him. All he could think about was how beautiful she was, and how she was about to become a part of him. It was almost unbelievable, but he wasn't the slightest bit nervous. In fact, he was almost giddy.

Finally, Hermione made it up to the altar. It felt so incredible to be standing before Dumbledore with Draco right in front of her; the man who she would be spending the rest of her life with from this day forth. Absolutely incredible.

"Ready?" Draco whispered, taking Hermione's hands into his own.

Hermione gave his hands a tight squeeze. "More than I've ever been before."

Draco leaned in and whispered in her ear so quietly that no one else could hear. "I love you, Hermione. And it's forever this time."

Hermione smiled up at him, tears shining in her eyes. It was forever. This was it, and it felt wonderful. For the first time since before she could remember, everything felt alright for her. And now with Draco by her side for the rest of her life, she was positive that it would stay that way forever. No more problems, no more drama. And most of all, no strings attached.


End file.
